


Orihime's Growth

by Vanpat



Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-26
Updated: 2016-06-24
Packaged: 2017-12-13 02:10:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 23,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/818727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanpat/pseuds/Vanpat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Orihime Inoue has developed her abilities in secret but Ichigo finds out about it. Unknown to either of them, her powers will soon be necessary in order to save Ichigo from a fate worse than death.</p>
<p>Warning! Spoilers up to Manga chapter 538.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [halfdemonfan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/halfdemonfan/gifts).



> Well halfdemonfan, here's the smut I planned to give you.
> 
> This took a few days to put together. The ending doesn't have the same impact as he rest of the story but I wanted to finish it there. Cut me some slack.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy the story~

Ichigo Kurosaki, Substitute Shinigami, was wearing a shihakusho with Zangetsu sheathed on his back as he just about completed his nightly patrol of the town. There were a few hollows here and there that were easily dealt with... until he was on the trail of the last hollow. The Substitute Shinigami first detected it near Inoue's apartment when he started his patrol, but it was weak so he wasn't worried about Orihime's safety at first. However, by the time he was done with the rest of the hollows in Karakura Town, the one closest to Inoue was still alive. Seriously, what was she doing? Ichigo felt her at least using her powers, but was the hollow giving her THAT much trouble? It was when he was within a block of Inoue's position that he sensed it... and saw it.

The young redhead's hair blew in the strong wind that was building up in the area. Her eyes were unwavering as she stared straight at the hollow in front of her. She was wearing her school uniform, oddly enough, but it looked like it was hastily put on. A few buttons of her blouse here and there weren't buttoned and her skirt seemed to have been pulled up a bit high. She only had one stocking on and no shoes. Her clothing was also wet and clung to her body, but that wasn't the only thing that grabbed his attention though. Her body had a golden aura around it.

Ichigo watched the hollow raise its' arm and swing it down at her. He had no intention of just watching this but Inoue just raised her hand and stopped the attack without even calling out Santen Kisshun. It almost seemed like she caught the attack with her bare hand but then the visored saw it: The golden aura around her right hand had focused in intensity and blocked the attack. She then swung her left hand towards the Hollow's arm with a chopping motion before her hand severed the claw from the Hollow, causing it to roar out in pain. The clean cut was almost like Koten Zanshun. Was it some kind of new way to use her abilities? "Inoue!" He shouted, breaking the redheads' concentration.

"E-Eh? Kurosaki-kun?" The aura around her wavered slightly as she turned her head toward Ichigo in amazement. The hollow took advantage of that opening and raked its other clawed hand at her chest; ripping through her blouse and leaving deep cuts in her stomach. "Aah!" She screamed out painfully; stumbling back. Ichigo wasted no time in flying down from his spot in the air at the hollow and slicing down at the monster with Zangetsu; cleaving the monster in half. As it starts to vanish, he focuses on Inoue and watches sees that her wounds were miraculously healed. Her blouse wasn't restored so he could see that she didn't have a bra on. Her cheeks reddened as she hastily covered her breasts with one arm. "W-Why are you here? What about the other Hollows?"

"I took them out." Ichigo's cheeks were red from seeing one of her nipples; currently reaching one hand down towards her to help her up. Inoue takes the hand and he helps the redhead back onto her feet. "I thought you could handle the Hollow here yourself but I still felt it after I was done with the others. I came because I was worried about you."

"O-Oh..." Inoue had intended to take out the Hollow before the others were gone but she was too focused on her opponent. She had been trying to keep her new trick a secret but now Ichigo had seen it... and he was checking her out! That thought made her cheeks turn dark red. How embarrassing! "Um, thanks."

Ichigo stared at her before letting go of her hand, "So what was that?" Inoue had been afraid that he'd ask that. She hadn't finished perfecting that move yet. He took her hesitation to mean she didn't want to talk about it. "It's fine, I was just curious."

"No, I don't mind explaining it!" The busty healer replied hastily, "I just wasn't prepared for it. Let's go inside." She led the way to her apartment and unlocked the door; trying to keep one arm over her breasts at all times as Ichigo followed her inside. "I was in the middle of a shower when I felt the Hollow nearby." She admitted, explaining why she looked so hastily dressed and why her clothes clung to her. "Um, could you wait here while I finish up?"

"Sure." Ichigo replied as she watched the redhead as she rushed into the bathroom and closed the door.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Inoue took a deep breath as she leaned her back against the closed door; her heart pounding in her chest. How could this situation happen? She had been afraid that her new technique would be seen eventually while she was training, but of all the people to catch her like that, and in such an embarrassing situation! She felt a growing heat between her legs as she thought about what would have happened if the Hollow managed to cut into her skirt too.

Her fingers went to her blouse buttons and undid them before pulling it off. She could easily fix this with Soten Kisshun, but that wouldn't undo what Kurosaki-kun had seen. She felt her nipples harden at the memory of the look in his eyes when he looked at her breasts. Desire. Lust. Her breathing hastened at the thought of him touching her, caressing her curves, fondling her-

'No!' She mentally berated herself as her hands left her breasts; which were fondling them while she was daydreaming. 'Kurosaki-kun is in the apartment! I can't let him see such a vulgar display from me.' A part of her wanted him to see that though. She shook her head and pulled her stocking off of her right leg before pulling her skirt off. At least she had remembered to put her panties on in her haste out the door. She would have died of embarrassment if Ichigo caught her like that.

"Inoue, are you alright?" Ichigo's concerned voice came from the other side of the door, causing her to yelp in surprise.

"S-Sorry! I was just looking at my clothes to see how bad the damage was. I can fix it later though." The busty redhead replied hastily before walking over to the shower and turning the hot water on. Thankfully, it was still warm from earlier. She took a deep breath and stepped into the shower; the warm water caressing her silky smooth skin as she reaches over to grab the bottle of soap. She began to apply the soap onto her arms first before moving to her shoulders and stomach region. She didn't trust herself to touch herself intimately at the moment. Her hormones were too excited from having Ichigo this close to her while she was naked.

As she applied soap to her legs, bending over so her breasts hung down and the water dripped from the tips of her nipples, she finally decided to think over how to explain what she had just done. He had seen Shiten Koshun once, a move that combines her shield with Tsubaki to block an attack and then counter attack: A combination of two abilities. This new technique incorporated all three abilities, all six of her Shun Shun Rikka, into her body. She could 'reject' any attack with the 'outer shield,' Santen Kesshun. She could 'reject' any exhaustion or damage with the 'inner shield,' Soten Kisshun. Finally, she can 'repel both sides of the shield' to cut through anything with her attacks by 'rejecting' fusion of matter and splitting it, Koten Zanshun.

In theory, it makes her unstoppable... but she needs complete concentration, especially during her attacks. When she counterattacks, she has to lower the strength of her 'inner shield' and 'outer shield' in order to cut into her target. This is similar to the issue Koten Zanshun had in the past. The power output needed to cut through something left the attack itself, Tsubaki, open to damage. Her dislike of fighting is deeply rooted into her very soul, so even now she can't attack without weakening herself in the process because, subconsciously, she hates herself for fighting and hurting others.

The redhead sighed as she finished washing her body and straightened herself before grabbing the shampoo bottle. She begins lathering the shampoo into her hair as her thoughts went back to her abilities. Her lowered defenses from attacking was an issue, but another downside was the mental strain needed to focus her powers. Thankfully, the Shun Shun Rikka each have wills and minds of their own, allowing them to lessen the strain on her so that only a huge shock, like the earlier situation, would disrupt the necessary concentration. If it wasn't for the Shun Shun Rikka assisting in the use of the technique, this ability would be an impossible feat. She also couldn't use the abilities on other people while in this state without canceling it out. It required the harmony and balance of all the Shun Shun Rikka inside her body. However, the worst issue she had was the sheer amount of Reishi it drained from her for continuous use. She had intended to finish the battle when Ichigo showed up because she was running out of energy to keep her technique going.

She closes her eyes and tilts her head back, letting the warm water flow in streams down her curvy body as the shampoo was washed out of her hair. Inoue took a deep breath before her hands began to apply soap to her breasts before squeezing them. The redhead to let out a soft gasp from how sensitive she felt. “Kurosaki-kun...” She whispered out softly.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Inoue took a shower and was faced with an internal struggle, Ichigo had his own internal struggle to deal with, but it was far more serious. He grated his teeth as he heard that damnable laugh in his mind, 'Shut up.' He snarled mentally as he sat on the couch after he had checked up on Inoue.

'What's wrong King, having trouble?' Ichigo's inner hollow taunted, 'There's a simple solution to the problem: Take that redhead, rip the rest of her clothes off, pin her to the wall and fuck her.'

'Shut the hell up!' The Shinigami was slowly losing patience with his inner hollow. Ichigo closes his eyes and heard the sound of water in the distance before it fades away. He felt a strong pull on his body and Ichigo opens his eyes to see he was no longer in Inoue's apartment, but in his inner world. Around him were towering skyscrapers that reached towards the heavens. It was an empty world, save for himself and the one a few meters in front of him. It was almost like a mirror image of himself, except his shihakusho was reversed in color.

Lately, his inner hollow had been talking to him... but he still couldn't get in contact with Zangetsu. It didn't feel like his hollow was trying to take the Shinigami's body over though, so he decided not to bother Urahara about it. However, his hollow just forced him into his own inner world. This was a big enough of a sign to raise red flags and get help from the Visored. Worse yet, he couldn't leave his inner world. “What the hell do you want?” He grated out.

A chuckle left the hollows lips. “You seem to be in a bad mood today, your Majesty.” Hollow Ichigo just smirked at his counterpart. “Having problems controlling your desires? Your needs? Your wants?” His smirk widened at Ichigo's anger. “Your instincts?” The hollow licked his lips.

“I'm in full control of myself! What I'm angry about is how you won't fuck off!” Ichigo's right hand shook before grabbing Zangetsu off his back and swinging it down to the side; shattering some of the windows of the skyscraper they were standing on.

“You make it sound like this has nothing to do with me, but unfortunately, I have to watch all these fantasies you manage to think up about her!” The Hollow snarled out before holding his right hand out and a sword shaped like Zangetsu but reversed colors appears hilt first from his fist and the blade ends with its' point resting against the ground. He swings the sword back so it rests on his shoulders. “You know what has always pissed me off? You might have the instincts to fight, you might have the lust for battle, but you don't have the balls to even kiss your slutty little Princess!”

Ichigo's feet left the floor as he flew straight at the Hollow; his eyes filled with hatred as his sword swings diagonally down at the source of his rage. The Hollow grinned and swung his sword perpendicular to Ichigo's slash. A massive shockwave blew past both of them at the clash of their swords. “Ha! You wanna fight that badly? Why not make a bet? If I win, I get your body! I'll have plenty of time to turn your Princess into my toy!” The Hollow grinned as Ichigo overpowered him and forced him back. The moment the hollow started sliding back from Ichigo's attack, the Shinigami fired a light blue Getsuga Tensho at him before the Hollow fired his own red Getsuga Tensho to cancel Ichigo's out; causing an explosion the blew forced the two of them back a few meters away from each other.

“Don't you dare talk about Inoue like that!” Ichigo roared before pointing his Zanpakuto straight at Hollow Ichigo, his eyes widening as the Hollow did the same; grinning maniacally before they shouted in unison. “'Bankai!'” A huge surge of white and black light filled the area.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Inoue knew this was wrong, thinking of Kurosaki-kun in this way right now, but she couldn't help herself. Her imagination went wild as she felt strong hands grab her breasts from behind; squeezing them roughly as gentle lips kissed the side of her neck. This scent was Kurosaki-kun. This touch was Kurosaki-kun. 'Inoue' She heard him whisper in a low voice; his hot breath caressing her neck. 'I want you.'

She felt a shiver run down her spine from his husky voice before she turned around to face him, but there was no one there. Her hands were on her breasts; squeezing them as an unbearable heat grew between her legs. Inoue was half disappointed and half ashamed. Her fantasies betrayed her so vividly... and it only served to arouse her further. The redhead whimpered softly as her right hand left her breast, rubbing down her chest and past her stomach to her most private region. Her cheeks were scarlet at how wet she felt there and moaned loudly as her index and middle fingers brushed against her clit. She couldn't hold back the volume of her moan; praying the shower was loud enough to muffle the noise.

“Kurosaki-kun...” She whimpered out as she closed her eyes. The moment she closed her eyes, her other senses were overcome with another presence. 'Kurosaki-kun.' She thought to herself. The redhead resisted the urge to open her eyes. Inoue knew it was just her overactive imagination again, but she didn't want it to end. She felt her back pressed against the shower wall as she spread her legs apart. “Please... Kurosaki-kun.” That plead left the redheads' lips. “Fuck me.”

'Inoue.' She heard him breath out before something long and hard slowly slide into the healer; causing her to gasp from the pleasure surging throughout her body. He groaned softly; a sound that aroused Inoue greatly. She felt him begin to thrust in and out of her tight hole; his fingers pinching and pulling on one of her nipples. It was going to drive her insane! The redhead lost track of time as she felt Ichigo fuck her gently at first, but he sped up rather quickly. Her moans grew louder and louder until time stopped for her the moment Ichigo spoke, 'I love you, Orihime.'

“Kurosaki-kun!” The redhead screamed as that single statement pushed her over the edge and her eyes shot opening as she felt sweet honey covering the two fingers inside her. Her left index and middle fingers were pinching her nipple as well. Her breathing was erratic as her back slid down the wall until her bottom hit the floor; Inoue's long legs spread out as she tried to clear her mind. For all she knew, Kurosaki-kun heard her. That thought filled her with shame... but as time passed, the Shinigami didn't come to investigate why she screamed. Worry filled her heart before she felt a familiar reiatsu in the living room. She immediately relaxed as it felt calm and serene at the moment. Perhaps he had fallen asleep?

Her cheeks turned deep scarlet before she shook her head quickly. No, she'd have to wake him up and send him home before her overactive imagination and hormones decided that enough was enough and she did something... inappropriate. The redhead took a deep breath; deciding to wash herself free of the smell before sending Ichigo home.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A black sword swings through the air, scattering the smoke around Ichigo. His clothing had changed to a long sleeved, ankle long black shihakusho that as open in the front with three 'x' shaped marks holding the front together. Under his shihakusho was a white undershirt. He also had black glove on with an 'x' symbol on the back of each one. His Bankai was slimmer and resembled a Daito, but longer and becoming more curved near the tip; three protrusions on the blunt end near the top as well. Ichigo glared at the smoke still surrounding his Hollow before his eyes widened as a firm hand grabbed his face in a similar manner that Ichigo did to Aizen in their final battle before the Shinigami was thrown off the skyscraper and into another building; the force of the impact creating a crater around where he landed.

“Hahahaha! Come on Ichigo!” Hollow Ichigo laughed as he stood at the edge of the skyscraper Ichigo was on just moments ago. His Bankai form was identical but with reversed colors. “If you can't even keep up with me, I'll get your Princess. Hell, I'll even let you watch me turn her into a-” The hollow's taunting cut off when Ichigo vanished and reappeared in front of him; slamming his blade down at the hollow's head. The hollow laughed maniacally as he raised his white sword to block the attack; a clash between black and white reiatsu forming between the blades.

“I'm going to kill you!” Ichigo roared as the black reiatsu intensified in strength and size before the hollow grinned evilly and lets the Shinigami win the sword lock; sidestepping the black Getsuga Tensho that fired out of Ichigo's Tensa Zangetsu the moment it hit the ground. The force of his swing had left him wide open to a free attack.

A smirk on his face, the hollow slashes horizontally at Ichigo's left arm as the Shinigami rolls to the side in an attempt to evade. That quick action, along with the activation of Blut Vene, allowed Ichigo to only get away with a light cut in his left shoulder rather than losing his arm. Ichigo swore before jumping back and to his right, gaining some distance from the hollow as he recovered his stance. “You really are hopeless, Ichigo.” The hollow taunted, “Even after all that training, you can't beat me.” He smiled maniacally before charging at Ichigo and swinging his sword like a berserker at the Shinigami; forcing him to take the defensive.

Something was wrong. His hollow shouldn't be this strong, not with Zangetsu keeping him in check. Moreover, even after his powers returned, he couldn't talk to Zangetsu or bring out his mask. His hollow didn't make his presence known until recently. What triggered the hollow growing so strong? A few slashes had gotten through as he was thinking about this but his Blut Vene prevented heavy damage. He didn't have the time to think about this!

Finally, Ichigo and his hollow clashed their swords against each other; struggling against each other. To be more accurate, Ichigo was straining to overpower his hollow but the white blade wouldn't budge an inch. “Damn you... how the hell are you this strong? Where's Zangetsu?!” The hollow grinned at Ichigo. “What's so damn funny?!”

“You didn't figure it out yet, dumbass?” The hollow taunted before the two of them jumped back, gaining some distance as the hollow started to explain. “Then I'll start from the beginning, slowly, so you understand.” He smirked at the glare Ichigo gave him before continuing. “The Final Getsuga Tensho reduced both Zangetsu's and my power to almost nothing. Even if the day came when your powers returned, I knew Zangetsu would have the majority of his powers restored while my powers would dwindle.”

“After seventeen months, your reiatsu had started to grow and recover from the Final Getsuga Tensho. Of course, all that power went to Zangetsu rather than me. Then you made that blunder.” At Ichigo's confusion, he laughed. “You started Fullbring training.” The Shinigami's eyes widened before he swore. “You finally get it! Fullbring is a hollow-based ability. The more you used it, the more your powers grew... or rather, MY powers grew. The moment I heard that they'd transfer their Fullbring to you, I was overjoyed! I'd have even more power! Enough power to take you over the moment you turned into a Shinigami!” He then shrugged, “I didn't like most of the abilities. They didn't fit my style, but I wasn't after the abilities. All I wanted was the power attached to them.”

“But it didn't turn out that way.” Ichigo growled out. If the situation with Xcution unfolded differently, his hollow would have consumed him. That thought sent a chill down his spine. “Ginjo was using me just to get my Fullbring.”

“Which is why it took so damn long to get this far!” His hollow shouted, “All that power I accumulated went up in smoke the moment he stole the Fullbring! And then you were stabbed with that reishi-infused sword! Zangetsu, who was the verge of being completely consumed by me, recovered and overwhelmed me. I knew there was no chance to take you over then.”

“Are you going to get to the point any time soon?” Ichigo demanded in a flat voice. “I don't want a recap, I want an explanation!”

“Fine. Skipping the power struggles back and forth, you stupidly fought Juhabach and your Bankai was cut in half.” The hollow growled out, “Zangetsu lost a great deal of power when that happened and, from there, I slowly began to take over. I learned my lesson from the first time I tried to consume you. I kept my mouth shut. If you knew about my growing strength, you'd tattle to the Visored about it and that would end my chance to overpower you. By the time Zangetsu was reforged, I had almost reached the point of completely taking over, but he STILL managed to stop me... until now.”

Ichigo glared at his hollow. It was just like last time... no, his hollow was more patient. It wasn't until he had been dragged into his inner world that he realized the danger. He thought the hollow was all bark when he apparently returned a few days ago so the Substitute Shinigami didn't bother contacting Shinji or Urahara about it. He did tell his dad that he couldn't talk to Zangetsu though.

“What's your problem?” Ichigo growled out, “You didn't have any issues working together with me after I beat you in my Visored training... and when you merged with Tensa Zangetsu to fight me so I could learn the Final Getsuga Tensho.”

“Because you proved you could fight with instinct! That you felt joy in fighting and reveled in cutting down your opponent!” Hollow Ichigo shouted with glee as he swung his left hand to the side. “So when you became King, I let you borrow my hollow powers. I was content with being the horse, as long as you used instinct to solve your problems. Sure, there was ONE thing you wouldn't do, but I was sure you'd come around to the idea eventually. But over a year and a half of waiting for you to get your act together, I've had it with all the pent up lust and affection you've had for her!” He pointed at a window of the skyscraper to Ichigo's right. A smiling face of a young woman was staring back at Ichigo in the reflection. It was Inoue Orihime.

Immediately, all the windows in his inner world were filled with various shots of the redhead at countless angles that had expressions of joy in them, whether from smiling, laughing, or just a fond stare directed from the window at him. It wasn't just her face that he saw in a few of those images; close ups of her bust, hips, and thighs were among the pictures. Whether it was in her school uniform, casual clothes, or even that time they went to beach last summer and she was wearing a bikini, they all featured her body in various poses that she unintentional made in a seductive way. “Which is why I'm going to kick your ass and have my way with your Princess!” The hollows' expression was filled with glee as Ichigo glared at him with murder in his eyes. “And I'm going to make you watch!”

“If you think I'm going to just sit by and let you take me over-” Ichigo growled out before he was cut off my his hollows' laughter. “What's so damn funny?!” He roared.

“You honestly think you can stop me?!” Hollow Ichigo grinned wickedly before raising his left hand up to his face. “I'll show you just how hopeless this battle is for you!”

Ichigo recognized that posture and immediately dashed at his inner hollow before a massive surge of white and red reiatsu pushed the Shinigami back; preventing him from approaching or even seeing the hollow. He gritted his teeth as the white reiatsu faded to reveal his hollow now wore an altered version of his white shihakusho that had white fur at the cuffs and around his neckline like a mane. The thing that drew his attention the most was the hollow mask he now wore. It was a black mask with white lines going down from the top, through the eye sockets, and down to the bottom of the mask. The mask also had long horns that pointed forward; curved slight inward before straightening out. His white hair was longer as well. The only improvement is that Ichigo didn't have to see that sadistic smile the hollow always showed on his face.

“Ha!” That damnable chuckle of his didn't change, unfortunately. “Still think you can win?!” Ichigo brought his left hand up to his face, trying to summon his mask but it wouldn't appear. “No mask for you, Ichigo!”

The Shinigami prepared himself for the worst as he replied, “I didn't think you'd let me anyways.” His voice was low as he spoke; lowering his hand and grabbing his sword with both hands, “And I don't think I can win... I HAVE to win!”

“Hahahaha!” The hollow found that hysterical for some reason, “That's what you said before I had to show up and clean up your mess in Hueco Mundo!” Ichigo remembered that battle too well. The battle against Espada Number 4, Ulquiorra Schiffer. He had lost and his hollow took over. At least Hollow Ichigo had the decency not to touch Inoue. “Remember?” The hollow gestured to his mask. “I warned you not to die and you kicked the bucket anyways.”

“Why didn't you attack Inoue too?” Ichigo demanded. He always wondered what reason he'd have to spare her.

“Are you stupid? When she screamed for help, your desire to protect her, whatever the cost, let me wake up. You subconsciously let me run wild in order to protect her.” The hollow said gleefully. “You could say I was grateful to her, although you could also say I lusted after that lush wench.” Ichigo ground his teeth together, “Don't get me wrong: She had a bangin' body, but looking back...” He pulled the mask up slightly so Ichigo could see the hollow lick his lips. “I realize the wait was well worth it. She's not a Princess anymore: She's a Queen. A busty, slutty-”

“Shut up!” Ichigo roared, “Getsuga Tensho!” He swung the sword down at the hollowfied version of him; a wave of black and red reiatsu surging towards his target.

The hollow smiled wickedly before pulling the mask back down over his face. “Getsuga Tensho.” A massive surge of reiatsu left the hollow's sword and clashed against Ichigo's Getsuga Tensho before overpowering it. The Shinigami swore before unleashing a second Getsuga Tensho to counter the hollow's attack, but it still broke through. Luckily, Hollow Ichigo's attack was weakened enough by breaking through two Getsuga Tensho's that Blut Vene shielded the Shinigami from damage. “Hahahaha!” The hollow laughed as reiatsu began gathering into a bright crimson sphere between his horns. “Let's see how you block this!”

On a building some distance away, a man with short black hair and wearing a black hooded cloak watched the battle with narrowed eyes as Hollow Ichigo fired a cero; causing the entire inner world to shake. 'This is getting out of hand.' He thought to himself, 'I'm reaching my limit of suppressing the effects of the battle on Ichigo's physical body and reiatsu. The hollow doesn't intend to hold back this time.' He closes his eyes slowly before opening them again; his gaze full of resolve. 'Although I cannot interfere, there is someone who can. One is on the way while another is nearby.' Tensa Zangetsu looks up at the sky, 'If they don't arrive in time, this world shall sink into the sea again. Sinking into depths so deep that it shall never reach the sky again.'

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The redhead stepped out of the shower after turning the hot water off. Orihime took a deep breath and sniffed her fingers. The smell of her deed earlier was gone thankfully. She still felt sensitive, even after pleasuring herself with that vivid fantasy. Inoue shook her head firmly before looking at her clothes. Normally, she'd just leave the bathroom wearing only a towel, but with Kurosaki-kun here, she didn't trust herself to keep the towel on. Sighing softly, she dried herself off with the towel hanging on the rack next to the shower; occasionally moaning or gasping in pleasure when she touched a sensitive spot on her body.

After the healer dried up, she focused her attention on her torn blouse. She grabbed her hairpins and was about to use Soten Kisshun when an overpowering reiatsu resonated throughout the area. Her eyes widened as she grabbed the towel and wrapped it around herself quickly. She remembered this reiatsu too well. The first month after Aizen's defeat, she had a single nightmare every time she slept: She watched Ulquiorra kill Ichigo... and then he rose to protect her. Kurosaki-kun turned into something so cruel and merciless. Even now, after a year and a half, she could remember the hollows' roar.

She rushed out of the bathroom, almost stumbling out of her towel a few times before kneeling next to Ichigo's motionless figure on the couch. His Zanpakuto had shifted to Bankai and his clothes had changed with his sword. The wounds he had received in his inner world were reflected onto his own body. Panicking, she called out Soten Kisshun and surrounded Kurosaki-kun in the oval bubble, trying to heal him and 'reject' the hollow from taking him over. While the wounds were healed, there was no change in his reiatsu over the next few minutes. “No...” The shield vanished and the petals returned to her hairpins.

It was just like before. No matter how much time had passed, she was still too weak to help him. “Always...” She whispered before she clenched her fist, “Ayame! Shun'o!” Two of her six fairies fly out of her hairpins and look at her. “Please! Isn't there anything I can do?!”

“Orihime-san...” Ayame whispered sadly. “You... don't have the reiatsu needed to overpower and suppress the hollow inside Ichigo-san. I'm sorry.”

“It's just like last time! I can't do anything! I trained and trained to my absolute limits for the past year and it's still not enough?!” Inoue screamed. She knew she was being unreasonable about this, but fear and desperation clawed at her heart. It almost felt like a knife was being twisted inside of her.

“Oi woman!” She felt a small punch hit her cheek as Tsubaki floated in the air next to her. The other three Shun Shun Rikka had also come out. “Grow a backbone. You should have understood the moment we started training you that everyone has a limit that they cannot surpass. There's a limit to the amount of power any person can contain and control. You're just a human. This is beyond your ability to fix.”

Silence filled the room as Orihime lowered her head towards the ground. After a few moments, she whispered out. “Then I'll stop being a human.” She looked up at her Shun Shun Rikka, “If there's anything I can do, no matter how insane or dangerous it is, I'll do it.” Her eyes were unwavering and full of resolve.

The Shun Shun Rikka were staring at her in amazement before a soft chuckle left Tsubaki's lips. “Heh, that's a nice look in your eyes.” He pulled the handkerchief down from his mouth and grinned at her. “You finally grew a backbone, eh Orihime?”

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Ichigo wondered how this typical night time patrol turned into a battle to the death with his inner hollow. He gritted his teeth as he flew to the side to avoid the cero being fired at him one after another. If the Shinigami took one of those head-on, even with Blut Vene active, he would receive a fatal wound. “What's wrong Ichigo?!” The Hollow shouted with glee, “Try and block my cero!”

'Yeah, I'll get right on that.' He thought to himself sarcastically as he hid behind one of the skyscrapers. There was no way he could counter that kind of raw destructive power. His exhaustion suddenly disappeared and his wounds closed. 'Great, Inoue knows about my situation... I didn't want to worry her.'

“Your whore should learn to behave!” The hollow roared angrily, unable to stop Orihime from healing Ichigo's physical and spiritual body. “I intend to punish her for interfering after I'm done with you!”

'He can't do anything to her right now?' Ichigo frowned slightly before seeing a familiar figure in the corner of his eye. He turned to face it but the figure was gone. 'I see. You're doing all you can to stop the hollow from going on a rampage outside, Zangetsu. Thank you.' A shadow looms above him and he looks up in time to see a crimson sphere between two curved horns.

“Daydreaming again, Ichigo?!” The hollow screamed before firing the cero at point blank range. This time, Ichigo couldn't completely avoid the attack. He fell out of the smoke created from another collapsing building; missing his left hand and part of his forearm.

Ichigo suppressed the urge to scream, but goddamn, it hurt like hell! 'Shit, shit, SHIT!' He swore savagely to himself mentally as he flew downward with the debris. A plan. A strategy. Anything! He needed to do something! His hollow was toying with him in their first fight, but this time, he was out for blood. 'Tch, so much for getting along with the bastard.' The Shinigami thought savagely to himself.

“Come out, come out wherever you are~” His hollow said in a sing song voice before growling as he felt Inoue's power enter the inner world again. Ichigo's hand and forearm were restored. “You little bitch!” Hollow Ichigo shouted angrily. “How do you keep interfering?! You're just a weak human, damnit!”

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Inoue continued healing Ichigo's spiritual and mental body as she listened to Tsubaki's suggestion. The redhead was serious about risking everything for Kurosaki-kun. The other Shun Shun Rikka were shocked at the suggestion Tsubaki proposed.

“Tsubaki! That idea is out of the question!” Shun'o shouted. “Do you even understand the implications of that suggestion?! Forget dying! That puts Orihime-san very soul in danger!”

“She wanted a suggestion so I gave her one.” Tsubaki growled out, “Unless you're saying there's a better way with less risk?” The other Shun Shun Rikka were silent at that.

“It's fine.” Inoue whispered, “Because I swear that I won't be a burden to Kurosaki-kun any longer. I have to do this.” She lowered the barrier around Ichigo and gently pressed her body against his as her left hand rested on the pummel of Tensa Zangetsu. Her right hand reached up to caress his cheek as she closed her eyes and focused her powers.

It was when she was focusing her powers that she sensed it. “...Kurosaki-san, I know you're watching outside. If there was anything you could do, you would have done it by now.” There was only silence, but his reiatsu flickered slightly. “You can come in if you want.”

“I've seen enough girls in their birthday suits already.” Isshin's voice came from the other side of the front door. “So I'll pass.” The door slowly peeked open before Isshin threw something inside at Inoue.

“Eh?!” She stumbled over Ichigo's body in order to grab it. Kurosaki-kun's combat pass.

“Your plan is crazy, you know.” Isshin added, “Being in a spiritual body might give you an advantage. And make sure that badge stays attached to him before you try anything. It'll help to keep his reiatsu in check.”

“...You're not going to try to stop me and say it's too dangerous?” Inoue seemed a bit surprised.

“Orihime-chan, I ran into a young woman twenty years ago that saved my ass from a hollow. She fired arrows at him from a distance but couldn't get a clean shot so she did the craziest thing she could in that situation. She let the hollow bite her shoulder, grabbed the back of his head to keep him there, and shot a point-blank arrow through his head.” The former captain had a faint smile on his lips as he recalled that day. “I warned her not to get involved, of course, but she flat out ignored me and did it anyways. Took a lot of brass to do that with a victorious smile on her face as she fired that final arrow.”

The healer blinked in surprise, “Was that young woman-” A look of realization crossed her face before Isshin cut her off.

“From then on, I learned something: Don't try to stop a woman who is prepared to die to save someone... especially when the woman loves the one she wants to protect.” He smirked at her through the open door. “I'll just tell you one thing: Don't get yourself killed.” Orihime nodded as Isshin shut the front door.

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“I'm shocked you didn't stop her, Isshin-san.” Urahara said in mock amazement after Isshin closed the door. “Did Orihime-san's behavior remind you of the good old days you spent with Masaki-san?”

“Shut it.” Isshin snorts as his right hand rests on his Zanpakuto's pummel. “Contact Soul Society yet?”

“I told them the situation was under control and to use Kurosaki-san's badge to keep his reiatsu in check.” The former 12th division captain said coolly before looking up at the cloudy sky. “We're in for miserable weather soon. Let's hope that's not a bad sign.” He stares at the box-shaped barrier surrounding Inoue's apartment. “If his hollow takes over, are you prepared to do what you need to?”

“Don't ask me again.” The man growled out, “If I wasn't prepared, I wouldn't be here.” He didn't want his resolve to shaken. The idea of cutting his son down was unacceptable, but to let him run wild as a hollow and kill Yuzu and Karin was unfathomable as well. Besides, if Masaki looked down from heaven and saw what her son had become, a hollow, she would be filled with sadness and despair. That was something Isshin would never allow to happen.

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Ichigo couldn't get into close range combat with that bastard trigger happy with his cero. Even though Inoue was constantly healing him from the outside, he didn't know how long she'd last. He couldn't risk charging in, but he also couldn't risk hesitating. By now, he had gotten used to the rate of fire of the hollow's cero. It took a minimum of two seconds to charge it enough to fire. Five seconds worth of charging would overpower Blut Vene and inflict a fatal wound on Ichigo if it hit directly. He judged this by the density of the reiatsu in each of his cero compared to the damage received by each.

Regardless, he felt his reiatsu dropping rapidly. He needed to end this now, before he ran out of reiatsu for Blut Vene!

“Stop flying around like a pansy!” The hollow shouted as he fired cero, one after another. Ichigo was forced to weave and dive around the blasts of reiatsu. Suddenly, the hollow vanished and reappeared in front of Ichigo; swinging his sword down on the Shinigami. Ichigo didn't have the time to avoid the attack and was sent crashing face-first into skyscraper the battle started on.

“Shit...” The Shinigami's pride was the only thing really damaged right now. The cut didn't pierce Blut Vene, but he didn't expect such a sharp change in tactics. Considering how erratic and unpredictable his hollow was, he should have expected it. He struggled to get up after the wind got knocked out of him from the impact before a strong foot pushed his head into the ground. Ichigo grit his teeth as he turned his head so he could see the hollow. Even with that mask on, he could tell the bastard had an expression of glee at having Ichigo helpless.

“You bastard...!” Suddenly, pain shot through his body as he ran out of reiatsu to keep Blut Vene active. “Fuck...”

“Hey, King, looks like you lose.” The hollow pointed out, “But hey, don't worry! I won't kill ya. After all, I want to hear you scream and rage while you're powerless to stop me from defiling your precious Queen.” Clouds began to move in; blotting out the clear blue sky and the sound of thunder rumbling reverberates throughout the inner world. The hollow crushed Ichigo's wrist before slipping his foot under the black Bankai and kicks it up into the air; catching it with his left hand. As he expected, Ichigo's wrist and hand recovered with ease from Inoue's healing. “It's only a matter of time until the redheaded slut runs out of reiatsu. I could just keep you like this, under my foot for the next few minutes. It's a great deal of fun, actually.” He heard a low growl come from Ichigo. “Or I could do this!” He reverses his grip on the black Tensa Zangetsu before stabbing Ichigo in the back with it.

A sharp pain reverberated throughout the Shinigami's body before it was numbed. “You asshole.” Ichigo snarled as the hollow took his foot off of him and began to walk away. “W-Wait...!” He shouted before the wound reopened. “Gah...!” He coughed up some blood. “I'm... not done...!”

The hollow turned around to look at Ichigo as if bored, even though the mask hid his face. “You know, this whole fight felt anti-climactic. I expected some huge struggle. Sure, your whore of a girlfriend intervened... but I expected more than that from you, King! I expected you to defy me to your last breath... but look at this world!” Rain began to fall and cover the two of them in droplets. “You've given into despair! You stopped moving forward!”

Ichigo felt the full pain of the stab course throughout his body as Inoue's healing ended. Despite that, he still struggled to stand. Gritting his teeth and shutting his eyes from the pain; he let out a roar as he stood up and the blade fell out of him as he gasped painfully. The sword landed with a clang on the ground before Ichigo knelt down to grab the sword. Every breath taken sent nothing but pain coursing through his body.

“Tch.” The hollow swung his sword to the side. “I just gave you a fatal wound, so why won't you stay down? Can't have you dying off yet, after all.”

“I won't... let you touch Inoue.” Ichigo growled out as he took a staggering step forward. Blood was seeping out of his chest but he didn't care. He had to keep fighting, no matter the cost.

The hollow laughs, “You can't stop me! But since you're so intent on dying, I'll just end it now!” He took a few steps forward before stopping. “Ah, took you long enough, Tensa Zangetsu-san.” The hollow spoke out respectfully as a figure wearing a black robe walked past Ichigo and stopped in front of him. The hood was drawn over his face so it couldn't be seen. “You saved me the trouble of hunting you down and devouring you.”

Ichigo was close enough to see a few differences in the figure. The sword the person in front of him had in their right hand was his original Bankai's form. Their hands and the figure's body were both slender as well. Although the figure in front of him had Zangetsu's reiatsu around them, there was another reiatsu present. A soothing, familiar reiatsu.

“What's wrong, Zangetsu-san?” The hollow asked intently, “You don't seem very talkative... unless you've just come to die with Ichigo?” He then laughed before the hollow began to charge a cero. “Then I'll gladly grant your wish!”

The figure frowned under the hood and vanished before reappearing in front of the hollow. The hollow didn't have the time to react as a black sword sliced one of his horns off; disrupting and destabilizing the cero. “Get away from Kurosaki-kun.” A young woman's voice resonated from under the hood.

“Y-You're-!” The hollow growled out before a massive explosion encompassed the area around the two of them. From the smoke raised from the explosion, footsteps were heard as the figure walked out of it with a shield behind them. The shield was triangular in shape and had the emblem of a hibiscus flower with six petals on it.

Ichigo's eyes widen in shock at the reiatsu flowing out of the shield before it vanished and three spheres of light returned the the figure. “...Inoue?” He whispered softly. The figure's lips formed a broad smile before they pulled the hood back to reveal a familiar heart-shaped face with long orange hair.

“You whore!” A loud scream echoed throughout the inner world as Ichigo's hollow flew out of the explosion and slicing down at the redhead. Inoue turned around quickly and swung her black sword to block the hollow's slash; pushed back by the force of the attack. “How?! How the fuck are you here?!” The hollow didn't have his mask anymore and both humans were pleased to see a look of pure shock and rage on his face.

Ichigo was curious about that too. Had this been possible, why wouldn't the Visored had helped him in his fight against his inner hollow? Two spheres of light shot out from the front of Inoue's robe and surrounded Ichigo on either side before a familiar golden barrier encircled him; his wounds being restored almost instantly and his exhaustion fading.

This kind of power- was this really Inoue?! “Greetings, Kurosaki-san.” Shun'o spoke out from one of the points of the shield. “You must be quite shocked to see us here. I would explain, but I'm sure Orihime-san would pout because she wanted to impress you herself.”

“You can explain it, Shun'o.” Orihime spoke in a strained voice, “I'm a bit busy at the moment!” Black reiatsu flowed from her sword before she shouted. “Getsuga Tensho!” The hollow was forced back a few meters from the attack, but Inoue didn't plan to wait for a counterattack. The redhead immediately went on the offensive and swung the sword she had in her hand like a master; leaving no openings and continuing to force the hollow back away from Kurosaki-kun.

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Inoue was grateful that Kurosaki-san gave her Ichigo's combat pass. This increased the chances of succeeding greatly. She squeezed the badge and felt her soul separate from her body. It was a strange feeling... it felt like when her soul had left her body and she saw her brother again, but as a hollow. She shook off that feeling: The redhead needed to hurry!

She turned to stare at her empty body regretfully. “...Koten Zanshun, I reject.” She whispered before Tsubaki cut the soul chain connecting her to the body. 'No going back now.' Inoue thought to herself sadly before whispering, “Soten Kisshun.” She surrounded herself and Kurosaki-kun in the barrier. Her hand grabbed Ichigo's and placed it on the combat pass before her hand held onto the other side of it; interlocking her fingers with his as her left hand rested on Tensa Zangetsu. “I reject.”

This was the dangerous part. Every soul had a 'shield' around them to keep them separate and unique. There were threads that connected their souls and hearts. These strong ties had allowed her to heal him in his inner world, even though it was normally impossible. But that wasn't going to be enough this time: She needed to connect her soul with his. The very idea sounded absurd and impossible but...

'Your powers infringe on God's territory.'

…Those words, Aizen's words, told her that nothing was impossible. Despite this, her soul felt like it was burning from her attempt to 'reject' the barrier between them. 'Please...' She begged mentally, 'Shun Shun Rikka, Kurosaki-kun, God... Let me help the man I love.' Reiatsu flowed out from Ichigo's badge and Tensa Zangetsu before it covered and consumed her.

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As the darkness faded away, she found herself atop a window of a skyscraper. She panicked and quickly launched her body against the window; turning her head to look down at the ground. Instead, she saw a man with short black hair and wearing a black cloak standing a few meters below her. He was standing against the building as if he could defy gravity! He was kinda hot too... She blushed at her thoughts and shook her head.

“...You look ridiculous right now.” The man actually sighed. “I'm questioning the wisdom of even involving you.” In his right hand was Tensa Zangetsu, but it had the form it did over a year and a half ago.

Inoue's eyes widened at seeing that sword. “...Are you Zangetsu-san?” She turned over so her back was against the window. It was then she realized that she was wearing a pure white shihakusho with a matching skirt and stockings. “Eh? What happened to my towel?”

“Did you prefer being half dressed?” Zangetsu asked coolly, “Now stand up. Gravity doesn't work the way you think it does here.”

Orihime blinks before blushing as she rose to her feet; brushing off her skirt on reflex before staring at Zangetsu. “Sorry... I've never been here before so...” She hesitated before looking around. “Is this... Kurosaki-kun's inner world?”

“Correct.” He pointed towards the sky and Inoue saw a crimson cero shot at a tiny figure in the distance.

“Kurosaki-kun!” Inoue shouted before starting to run in the direction of the fighting. After she ran forward a few feet in the direction of the fight, Zangetsu appeared in front of her as if to stop her.

“And what do you intend to do?” The Zanpakuto asked in a firm voice, “Do you even have a plan?”

Inoue bit her lower lip. In all honesty, she wasn't sure if she'd even get this far. “I'll think of something!” She answered. The redhead had an idea already, but she'd use it as a last resort. Mostly because the idea in question would undoubtedly destroy her soul.

Zangetsu stared straight at the young woman. “If you were to die, this world would sink into the sea once again. I won't allow that.” He reverses his grip on the sword; holding onto the blade and presenting the hilt to Inoue. “If you are resolved as you said outside, then take the sword. Take it and fight. I will guide your hand as long as you trust me.” She reached out and wrapped her fingers around the hilt. The redhead stared at the sword she held before looking up but Zangetsu was gone. Only his cloak was left... but she felt his reiatsu coming from the blade she now held in her right hand. 'Now go, Inoue Orihime.'

Orihime donned the black cloak and squeezed the sword hilt she held in her right hand. “Thank you, Zangetsu-san. I won't hesitate... and I won't die. I'll continue living for Kurosaki-kun's sake.”

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The rain had stopped but dark clouds still covered the blue sky as two figures clashed with all their might on the skyscraper. Sparks flew at each clash between swords. Finally, the two of them jumped back and charged reiatsu into their blade.

“Getsuga...” The two fighters chanted in unison before jumping at each other. “...Tensho!” Inoue and the hollow shouted in unison; swinging their swords at each other. The clash of white and black reiatsu shook the area as both of them struggled for dominance in the sword lock as the skyscraper cracked and broke apart beneath them.

“How are you this strong?!” The hollow demanded, “There's no way Zangetsu had this much power left!” Despite his rage, he was also impressed at Inoue's strength. Even if Zangetsu was guiding her movements, the strength it took to hold the sword and swing it with such resolve in the face of such a strong opponent was amazing.

“That's right!” Orihime shouted, “That's why I'm channeling my reiatsu into Zangetsu-san to fight!” The black aura around the sword grew in strength before she overpowered the hollow and sent him flying back; off the skyscraper. Inoue dashed after him into the air and slashed at him a few times, each attack parried, before the two warriors were forced into another sword lock.

The hollow grinned. “At first, I thought you were a weakling, an innocent Princess just waiting to be defiled.” He licked his lips; causing a shudder to run down Inoue's spine. “But now I know you're a fighter. Instead of being innocent and submissive in bed, you'd be rough and wild.” Inoue's cheeks turned scarlet. She did NOT want a reminder of some of her more... wild fantasies involving the man she loved. “Oh, I'm going to ENJOY whoring you out in front of Ichigo!”

Her entire face turned as red as a cherry as image of herself popped up in her head. An image she REALLY didn't need right now! She forced herself to focus on the battle and slashed at the hollow rapidly, trying to wipe that damn sadistic smile off his face. “Shut up! Just shut up!” That smile only grew larger as she sent him flying back with a Getsuga Tensho infused slash. “Why would you even care?! What do you gain out of it?!”

“For one, you're body was made to fuck. Hell, I bet you have plenty of fantasies involving Ichigo and that body of yours.” Inoue didn't want to listen to this! She fired another Getsuga Tensho at the hollow but he just deflected it with his left hand... and he kept talking like nothing happened! “Another reason is because Ichigo would fall into despair after seeing the woman he loves and lusts after get fucked in front of him!” He seemed excited about that idea, but Inoue wasn't paying attention to him now.

Time had stopped for her. Kurosaki-kun was in love with her? She lowered her sword slightly, too amazed at that revelation. She remembered the look Kurosaki-kun gave her outside her apartment earlier, those chocolate brown eyes full of lust, but she never thought...

'Pay attention!' She heard Zangetsu shout at her. Inoue pulled herself together as a cero shot from the hollow's fingers. She had no time to dodge or counterattack; sent flying back into one of the skyscrapers. She gasped out painfully as her back scrapped against the floor as she slid back. If it wasn't for Zangetsu's cloak and reiatsu protecting her, she could have be seriously wounded!

Shakily rising to her feet, the redhead pulled off and discarded Zangetsu's tattered and torn cloak. It wouldn't be able to protect her like that again, so wearing it would only serve to restrict her movements. 'I'm sorry, Zangetsu-san. My heart wavered slightly. It won't happen again.' She hesitates slightly, 'Zangetsu-san, is Kurosaki-kun really in love with me?'

The Zanpakuto debated whether or not to tell her before speaking out. 'He does. He cherishes you above all else, and desires you above all else as well.'

'Thank you, Zangetsu-san.' Now she was resolved more than ever. She refused to die, not until Ichigo knew her feelings. Not until they got married. Not until they grew old together. She would fight with all her heart for the man she loved. 'Tsubaki, tell Ayame and Shun'o to return to me. I'm going to fight all out.'

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“That's insane!” Ichigo shouted at Shun'o, “Attaching her soul to me is crazy! Hell, my old man is even worse for letting her do it!”

“Calm yourself, Ichigo-san.” Shun'o spoke out calmly, “She merely wished to protect you with all her heart. To trample on those feelings is unforgivable.” 

“...I'm just worried about her.” The Shinigami sighed, “And the plan she and Zangetsu came up with is insane, you know. It's brilliant, but it's still reckless.” He looked out in the distance as the fight continued. His wounds were healed but the field was still up in order to restore his reiatsu. He felt a familiar reiatsu and looked at the small fairy flying towards him. “What's going on?” Ichigo demanded.

“Shut it.” Tsubaki growled, “Shun'o, Ayame. Orihime says it's time to go all out.” The two of them nod their heads before the barrier vanishes from around Ichigo. “And brat, you better pull this off. If she dies, I'll kill you.”

“That's my line.” Ichigo glared at Tsubaki before the three of them flew off in the direction of the fight. The Shinigami took a deep breath before heading after them.

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Inoue held out her hand; creating a triangular shield that had a flower bud with six petals on it. The hollow slashed at the barrier like a berserker, laughing as the shield began to crack from the strain. She had to stall and save as much of her power as she could. Fear. She felt an uncontrollable fear claw at her as she went over the plan. It was insane. Her last resort plan...

Ayame, Shun'o, and Tsubaki flew up to her before returning to her hairpins; which hung on the left side of her pure white shihakusho. They were clipped into the robe near her breasts; a great deal of her cleavage on display for the leering hollow. The shield shattered into pieces before the other three fairies returned to her hairpins; the human retreating backwards.

“Hm? Is that all you've got?” The hollow smirked at her; the shihakusho she was wearing was torn in a few places already. “If you don't hurry up, your body will be as white as that shihakusho.”

That was another mental image she didn't want right now as her cheeks grew hot. Inoue took a deep breath before pointing her sword at the hollow at an angle with only her right hand on the hilt. “For Kurosaki-kun's sake...” Her body began to be covered with a golden aura, “I will cut you down.” She never felt more angry in her entire life. “Shun Shun Rikka, I reject!”

The surge of reiatsu released shocked the hollow. There was no way a human could produce this level of reiatsu! Their soul would shatter from being unable to handle the strain! “How?!” He roared before firing another cero at her. The clothes covering her were vaporized; revealing her perky nipples and shaved vagina, but there wasn't a scratch on her!

In a way, that was a huge turn on. He could be as rough and wild as he wanted with her later and she wouldn't die... but right now, seeing her like this made him taste fear. Inoue spoke in a soft voice, “I 'rejected' my current output and level of reiatsu.” Her soul felt strained as she felt her power surge into Zangetsu's sword. “I'm almost as strong as Toushiro-kun while using his Bankai.” The sword was surrounded by a golden aura before the sword blade turned bright red; like tempered steel from a forge. “Right now, my soul is screaming in protest... but I'll endure it until I kick your ass!”

The hollow was forced on the defensive as Inoue swung her sword at him with the skill of a master as Zangetsu guided her hand and regulated her power. The hollow was so close to her body but he didn't dare touch it with the fire in her eyes. Her breasts bouncing in front of him; her smooth thighs within arms reach...! “You whore!” He screamed, not noticing the slight decrease in reiatsu he had from each strike that hit his sword.

“What's wrong?” Inoue asked intently, her voice carrying some of the pain she felt right now. She had a time limit. Even with Zangetsu helping, her soul wouldn't be able to endure this much longer. “Can't beat me? I'm just a human.” She taunted before knocking the hollow's sword out of his hand. This was her chance! Inoue drew her sword back and slashed at the hollow before a loud heartbeat was heard.

He caught the attack with a lustful grin. The golden aura around her was gone now. Her defenses were gone... and Zangetsu was at his limit. Her eyes widened before he kicked her down into the skyscraper below. She grit her teeth and managed to focus her power into a shield that negated the force of the impact... The red blade had returned to black before it faded away. It was over for her as her Shun Shun Rikka 'rejected' the change she made with her reiatsu. She knew they had no choice, as her soul was at its' limit... but still...!

The hollow flew down and pinned her down against the shield. “You little bitch... I'm impressed you pushed me that far. But it's over now, and I'll be taking my prize.” She had a smile on her face. He had expected revulsion or disgust... or fear at least! “Why are you smiling?” He growled out.

“You didn't notice.” Her smile widened, “So focused on suppressing your instincts to touch me, to caress me... you missed what each swing of my sword did to you.”

What was she- His eyes widened in shock. Almost all of his reiatsu was gone. “What... did you do to me?!” He screamed at the redhead; her eyes filled with joy at his rage.

“I used Tsubaki with Zangetsu-san, 'rejecting' the bonds between your reiatsu and your body with each strike.” Orihime smirked, “Now you're in no shape to fight. Kurosaki-kun, however, is going to tear you apart.”

A loud battle cry echoed throughout the inner world as Ichigo flew up to the hollow, grabbed the front of his face, and pushed him to the edge of the skyscraper before throwing him into it.

The hollow stumbled as he tried to get up. “How...!” He watched as Ichigo landed in front of him with murder in his eyes.

“I'm part Quincy, remember?” Ichigo said in a flat voice before stabbing him in the chest. “When Inoue cut the reiatsu attached to you, I absorbed it from the air.” The hollow grabs the sword blade embedded in him before grinning. “...Something amusing?”

“Your Queen was impressive.” His form began break apart and fade away, “I'll submit... for now. However, you'll have a choice to make, your Majesty. If you don't choose correctly, I'll be back.” He grinned wickedly as his head vanished.

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Isshin relaxed his grip on Engetsu's pummel as the reiatsu around Ichigo stabilized. “Good. We can drop the barrier.” Isshin breathed out softly 'You actually pulled it off.' He thought to himself. Urahara signals Tessai lowers the barrier he created as Urahara approached the former captain.

“Do you want to check on them?” Urahara asked intently.

“As if.” The man snorted, “And keep your curiosity out of this. You can talk to Orihime-chan tomorrow after she gets some rest.”

Kisuke smiled under his hat, “I planned to.” He was obviously interested in Inoue's abilities and what exactly happened in Ichigo's inner world, but he could wait for a few days. “Well, let's get going before they wake up.” He said airily, “No sense bugging them with our presence.”

“Agreed.” Isshin grunted as they walked away from the door. When Isshin reached the bottom of the apartment steps, he looked back up at the door of Inoue's apartment and smirked. 'Heh, Ichigo will be in for quite the shock when he wakes up.' He thought to himself before facing forward and heading home.

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“Kurosaki-kun!” The Shinigami turned around and saw a young woman running towards him. Her long orange hair flowing behind her as she ran. With each step she took, her breasts jiggled slightly as if to tease him. Her long, smooth legs not hesitating in the slightest. Inoue's heart-shaped face visible as she got closer; her lips curled into a broad, happy smile while her eyes were filled with joy. She ignored the growing blush on his face and tackled him to the ground.

Ichigo groaned out softly as he felt her melons pressed against his chest as her petite, yet busty figure hugged his body perfectly. Her shaven womanhood was pressed against the growing bulge in his shihakusho. Intentional or not, the redhead was going to drive him crazy from how much of a cocktease she was being. “Inoue... you should put some clothes on.” His reasonable side suggested. Deep down, though, he wanted to rip his clothes off, pin her to the ground and fuck her until she was covered in cum. His cheeks darkened at those thoughts as Inoue snuggled her head under his neck before kissing it affectionately.

“Make me.” She whispered softly as her smooth fingers caressed his sides through the shihakusho he wore. Ichigo let out another groan at what she was doing to him; the tips of her perky nipples brushing against his chest. He wanted to grab them, fondle them, squeeze them... but he was almost scared to touch them. Scared that, if he started, he wouldn't be able to stop.

“Inoue... please stop.” Ichigo pleaded, “If you don't stop...!” His strong hands reached up and grabbed her shoulders. Inoue stopped caressing his sides and lifted herself off of him; giving the Shinigami a nice look at her perky nipples.

“...Say it.” Inoue said in a gentle voice, “Say those words I've always long to hear you say to me, Kurosaki-kun.” She stared straight into his chocolate brown eyes with her gentle gray eyes. “Tell me that you love me as much as I love you.”

She was NOT prepared for him to reverse their positions so suddenly. The redhead let out a soft gasp as she was pinned against the ground; her breasts jiggling before strong hands covered and squeezed her ample bust. “Kurosaki-kun...!” A low moan left Inoue's soft lips; her eyes widening in shock. Before Orihime could react, her gentle lips were covered by his. He kissed her with a kind of fierceness and hunger that made her shudder in delight.

Ichigo's hands pressed her large titties together as his tongue slid out of his mouth and caressed Inoue's cherry tasting lips. She arched her back and pressed her bust happily into his strong hands as she parted her lips and let Kurosaki-kun's tongue slip into her mouth. The young woman rubbed her tongue against the Shinigami's; moaning into his mouth as she lost herself in their passionate kiss. Her eyes closed before her arms wrapped around the young man that captured her heart and held him close.

Time seemed to stop for the busty healer. The warmth of Kurosaki-kun's body against hers; his hands on her breasts and fondling them lovingly. The smell of his shihakusho filled her with such a sense of peace and nostalgia; reminding her of when his strong arm lifted her slender frame against him when he came to save her. The familiar reiatsu surrounded and protected her; reminding the young woman of all those times he watched her with a gentle gaze and shielded the healer from harm.

She never wanted this moment to end. This sense of peace and contentment... but as Ichigo's lips left hers, four words snapped her out of it. Four words that made tears of joy fall from her eyes.

“I love you, Orihime.” Ichigo spoke out in a soft, gentle voice before his chocolate brown eyes filled with concern at Inoue's tears. “I-I'm sorry...”

“Don't be.” Orihime smiled happily as she wiped away her tears, “I'm crying because I'm happy... I'm so happy that I feel like my heart will burst.” She took a deep breath before reaching up and caressing his cheek. “Please, Kurosaki-kun... don't stop now.”

Ichigo nodded before planting a gentle kiss under her neck. The busty maiden let out a low moan as his kisses traveled ever downward. His strong hands no longer held her breasts, but rubbed and caressed her silky smooth side with his fingertips. She whimpered at what the Shinigami was doing to her. Finally, she let out a loud gasp of delight as his tongue flicked against the tip of her perky nipple. Inoue threw her head back with a smile on her face. “Kurosaki-kun...!” She groaned out as she squeezed her legs together; trying her best to ignore the heat growing between her legs.

Every caress, every whisper, every kiss... it just added fuel to the fire growing in her womanhood.

His lips wrap around her hard nipple before he sucks on it; his tongue flicking against the tip of it. Inoue let out a soft cry before her arms instinctively wrap around his head; holding it against her breast. “Don't stop.” She pleaded as the redhead's left hand released Ichigo's head and caressed down his cheek. It then went to her other breast and squeezed it gently; causing a loud moan to leave her lips.

Kurosaki-kun's right hand caressed up her side before going to her breast and resting on top of it; squeezing her left hand. His lips pull away from her nipple and he smiled up at her; the look in his eyes causing her heart to skip a beat. “You're a naughty girl, Orihime.”

Inoue's cheek turned scarlet. “I... I can't help it... My body feels so hot that I might melt from your touch.” She squirmed under him; embarrassed at admitting that.

“Really?” The Visored asked with a broad smile. “Then I should cool you off.” He slid down her body and her heart sped up. He couldn't mean to...! He stopped just below her waist and spreads her legs apart. The heat between her legs was unbearable... it felt like an unquenchable inferno. The redhead whimpered at the naughty twinkle in Kurosaki-kun's eyes as he stared at her before he lowered his head. She felt something wet and cool rub against the inferno, causing her to squeal loudly.

“Oh God...!” Orihime cried out; her entire body shaking from the sharp jolt of pure bliss that shot throughout her very being. But that wouldn't stop the young man from licking her again and again; each time he licked her, the redhead let out a soft squeal. Her breathing grew erratic as he continued to tease and torment her.

His left hand reached up and his fingers pinch her nipple as he helped her left hand fondle her other breast. The pleasure was going to drive her insane! Her breasts, her pussy... her entire body couldn't keep up the the feelings of bliss surging throughout her body. His tongue twirling around her entrance; rubbing against her clitoris. “Ichigo-kun!” Orihime screamed out loudly as she climaxed; her entire body shaking uncontrollably.

She felt him lick her cum up without the slightest hesitation; causing her to squirm slightly. When the Shinigami was done, he raised his head up and smiled at her fondly before licking his lips with a seductive look in his eyes. From the hollow, it disgusted her... but seeing Kurosaki-kun doing that...!

Ichigo didn't even have the time to think before Inoue grabbed the front of his shihakusho and pulled him down. He was surprised at such a forceful action but didn't protest. Inoue whispered softly into his ear in a shaky voice. “Take off your clothes before I rip them off.”

The Shinigami could obediently do as she asked, but he smiled and mirrored Inoue's earlier response to putting clothes on. “Make me.” He was shocked as Inoue grabbed his hard dick through his shihakusho before she bent down and wrapped her lips around it; fabric and all. He groaned out loudly as the redhead decided to tease him rather ruthlessly. “O-Orihime...!” The young man moaned out. There was only the shihakusho separating her mouth from his manhood.

Inoue seemed pleased at his reaction; her tongue grinding against the bottom of his shaft through his robe as her warm breath caresses his shaft. “Okay... I get it!” The redhead didn't stop, “I'm sorry!” She still didn't relent. “I give! I give!” Ichigo shouted with flaming cheeks between moans of bliss, “I'll strip, so please stop!”

Letting go of the Shinigami's hard shaft from through his shihakusho, the redhead smiles innocently up at him. “Now, was that so hard Ichigo-kun?” The Shinigami was a bit surprised at how... ardent the young busty maiden looked right now. “Well?” Inoue was smiling calmly at him but her eyes showed she wanted his clothes off now!

Ichigo didn't mind in the slightest as he eagerly took his clothes off. With each article of clothing removed, Inoue's smile grew larger and larger until he was naked. Her gentle gray eyes were staring straight at his hard, long dick before she licked her lips. The redhead crawled over and kissed the tip of his cock; earning a soft moan from Kurosaki-kun.

His low moan turned her on even more. Eagerly, she wrapped her slender fingers around his hard member and stroked it with her fingertips. The reaction he had; moaning and whimpering from her teasing, excited her. She parts her lips and flicks the tip of his cock with her tongue; earning a soft gasp for her efforts.

It felt like his cock was melting from what Orihime was doing to him. Her teasing was agonizingly slow and drove him crazy. He barely held back the urge to fuck her throat. His instincts were screaming at him to do it as Inoue's lips wrapped around the side of his cock and stroked down it as if using her hands; licking the underside of his dick. He refused to though. The Shinigami had teased her just as badly, so he really had no right to ruin her fun... but fuck, he wanted her!

“Fuck, Orihime...” He started breathing faster; his right hand grabbing the hair on the top of her head and squeezing it. “Don't stop...” Ichigo pleaded. Inoue smiled up at him, pulling away briefly before wrapping her lips around the tip of his dick and bobbing her head down his length; her right hand reaching under him to massage and play with his balls. Her tongue stroking the underside of his cock as she eagerly bobbed her head up and down.

Ichigo couldn't take anymore; holding her head in place and squeezing her hair he came in her mouth with a loud, blissful moan. “Fuck... Orihime...” He breathed out as he felt the redhead swallow his load as it pumped into her mouth. She missed a tiny bit that dripped down her lips. Inoue scoops it up after she pulls her head off his cock. A broad smile on her lips, she stuck the finger in her mouth and sucked it clean of his cum.

'It tastes... strange.' Inoue wasn't sure what to make of the taste. It wasn't a bad taste. In fact, she liked the taste, but she didn't know how to describe it in words. 'It taste like... Ichigo-kun.' She thought to herself before smiling to herself and looking up at the Shinigami. His eyes were filled with lustful desire as he stared straight into her eyes; causing a shudder of delight to run through her body.

'I need him now.' She thought to herself immediately after seeing that gaze. The redhead lie down on her back and spread her legs apart; her pussy soaking right now. “Ichigo-kun.” Her voice sounded almost small as she looked up at the Shinigami. “Please... I need you inside me.”

Ichigo smiles before lying on top of her and slowly sliding his hard shaft into her with a loud moan. Inoue's lips were nothing compared to this! He felt the wet tunnel around his dick; squeezing it tightly. “Ah!” The Shinigami gasped out from the jolt of pleasure that shook throughout his body. He reached up to her hands and held onto them; interlocking his fingers with hers.

Pure bliss. There was no pain like Inoue expected. The redhead heard all kinds of things about it. Maybe it was because this was a spiritual body? Maybe it was because she was in Kurosaki-kun's inner world? It didn't matter to her before long as she felt his long rod fill her pussy up completely. “I-Ichigo-kun!” She cried out happily before leaning in and kissing the young man on the lips fiercely.

The Shinigami moaned loudly against her lips; their tongues dancing and rubbing against each other as Ichigo fucked her gently. It felt like his cock was melting inside of her from how warm it was. “Orihime...!” He moaned out against her lips as he sped up; feeling Inoue's perky breasts pressed against his chest.

Sweat dripped down her body; grateful Kurosaki-kun was kissing her so he wouldn't hear anything but loud moans leave her lips. Some of the things she wanted to say made her cheeks turn scarlet. Ichigo-kun was practically pounding in and out of her at this point. The redhead felt so close to her climax; her body shaking in anticipation.

Ichigo was in no better shape than Inoue. The words he couldn't speak due to his loud moans would likely make Inoue's face turn a nice shade of crimson... and remind her of his hollow. 'Fuck... I'm so close...!' He thought to himself before Inoue broke her lips away from his.

“Cum with me, Ichigo-kun!” She screamed out as she climaxed. A few seconds later, she felt Kurosaki-kun's warm seed pump into her pussy. She was practically gasping from at how hard and fast she was breathing as she collapsed beneath the man she loved. Sweat drops fell down from his body and landed on her chest before he pulled out of her; collapsing next to her.

It took a few minutes for the two of them to catch their breath. The first to speak was Inoue. “That... That was amazing.” She managed to breath out before kissing Ichigo gently on the lips; smiling at her lover with fond eyes.

“Yeah...” Ichigo smiled back at her before returning her kiss. This caused the redhead to giggle before she snuggled against him. His left hand reached up and sifted through her long hair. Minutes passed as the two of them recovered and enjoyed the warmth they shared between their bodies. Eventually, Ichigo broke the silence. “Orihime... shouldn't you return to your body soon?” Inoue stared at him with confusion, “...Remember? You're in my inner world. You severed your soul chain.”

It took a few seconds before the busty healer gasped loudly and stood up quickly. “Oh God, you're right!” She screamed, “Shun'o! Ayame! Why didn't you remind me?!”

Ayame floated out from one of the hairpins; her cheeks very red as she tries her best to avoid looking at Ichigo-kun. “U-Um... well... you were having so much fun... and we didn't want to... disturb you.” She stuttered out, “I'm sorry!” The fairy apologized before flying back into the hairpin.

“Poor Ayame...” Inoue looked sad, “I wasn't thinking, but she's the most shy of the Shun Shun Rikka. Pulling her out in this situation... it must have been so embarrassing.” Her took the hairpins and put them in her hair. “Ichigo-kun... um... could you keep your eyes closed when you wake up?”

“Why?” Ichigo frowned slightly, “Is there something you don't want me to see?”

“Well... I'm only wearing a towel.” Orihime admitted as her cheeks turned slightly red.

Ichigo smirks at her, “Orihime, you're naked here. I don't think being dressed in a towel will embarrass either of us.”

“I-I know that!” Orihime stuttered, “But, well... just do it for me, okay?” She pleaded. The redhead wasn't sure what state her body would be in when she returned. Ichigo sighed and nodded, “Okay. I'll see you soon.” She kissed her gently on the lips before the redhead vanished.

He took his time putting his clothes on. He gave her at least a couple of minutes by now. Ichigo was about to leave his inner world before he felt a familiar presence behind him. “What the hell do you want?” He turned around to glare at his hollow.

“Just here to talk. Relax, your Majesty.” He smirked at the Shinigami. It seemed like he was telling the truth. Hollow Ichigo didn't have his Zanpakuto and his reiatsu was relaxed compared to his usual self. “Congratulations, you got your act together and fucked your Queen. You're welcome, by the way.”

Ichigo growled, “You only got in the way.”

“Me getting in the way let you fuck your Queen.” Hollow Ichigo pointed out smugly. “So now you owe me, and I know just what I want.”

“You aren't getting my body.” The Shinigami said in a cold voice; resisting the urge to draw Zangetsu from his back.

“Don't want it.” The hollow said bluntly, surprising Ichigo. “Since your fucktoy can enter your inner world, I want a few rounds with her as well.”

Ichigo glared at him hatefully, “I'm not letting you touch her... and don't talk about her like that.”

“Ha! You're a hypocrite then, Ichigo.” The hollow grinned at him, “You wanted to call her that when you were fucking her... and my request is a simple one to grant. It's not like there are any side-effects in here.”

“It's Orihime's decision, not mine.” Ichigo wasn't happy about the fact his inner hollow called him a hypocrite, even if it was true.

The hollow smirked, “Fair enough. Let her know for me then. Later, your Majesty.” He vanished.

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Ichigo opened his eyes and found himself on the couch with Inoue snuggled against him. She was wearing a white bra and matching panties with a smile on her face. “Orihime, you awake?” He asked in a gentle voice.

“No.” Orihime whispered as she snuggled closer. The lights were turned off in the room. “...Can we just stay like this?” A few moments passed and the Shinigami didn't respond, “Ichigo-kun?” Suddenly, she yelped as Ichigo picked her up in his arms.

“Relax, I'm carrying you to bed... and I'll stay with you tonight.” Ichigo said with a fond smile as he carried the redhead into her bedroom. Orihime cuddles against him before letting herself down. With a smile, she pulled down the covers and climbed into bed before patting the spot next to her. He chuckled as he slipped into bed next to her and kissed her on the lips gently. “Goodnight, Orihime.”

Inoue giggled and kissed him back lovingly, “Goodnight, Ichigo-kun.” She snuggled into his arms and fell asleep with him.


	2. Awakening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to my attempt to expand a brilliant idea! This story was meant to originally be a one shot, but I felt I could expand the effects on Orihime, Ichigo and their relationship. Plus, let's be honest: I hit a gold mine with this story.
> 
> I'll also drop the bombshell now: I'll probably alter the first chapter at a later date so the timeframe is different. Or maybe I'll keep it as is and make a new story with this at a later date. This is all on the planning stages but let me know what you think!
> 
> I don't own Bleach, but I'd definitely rewrite certain parts of it if I could (Like the Fullbring Arc).

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“Aah, Orihime-chan! Welcome to my humble store!” The man who spoke out cheerfully was wearing sandals, a dark green and white haori that vaguely resembled a captain's haori and a white and green hat on his head. His clothes underneath were dark green, but a few shades lighter than his haori. He had a fold up fan in his left hand that he was using to fan himself as he spoke to the ginger-haired maiden who was his visitor. They were currently outside his 'humble store' as he put it.

“Urahara-san, I need to talk with you.” The beautiful redhead wore her white school blouse with a red bow tied on at her collar. Her dark gray skirt reached halfway down her thighs and white stockings were pulled up from her feet to just above her knees. Gray dress shoes on her feet. Her heart shaped face that normally had a cheerful expression was strangely serious and her gentle gray eyes seemed strained. “In private. Right now.” She noticed Jinta and Ururu peeking out from the corner of the store.

The man's eyes peeked out from underneath his hat before he nodded. “We'll go to the basement.” As he led the way into the store, she recalled the last time she was here. It was about a week ago, after the incident with Kurosaki-kun's hollow almost going wild. The explanation Kurosaki-kun and her gave was not complete, as they left out certain facts like the hollow's lust and the aftermath of the fight. In all honesty, that bit wasn't any of Urahara-san's business. During the meeting, her slender hand never let go or Ichigo's hand.

“Well then, you wanted to talk in private?” Urahara snapped the redhead out of her train of thoughts. She had reached the basement without even realizing it. “Is it regarding the incident last week? If so, I'm surprised you didn't bring Kurosaki-san with you. You've been inseparable since that night.”

Inoue's cheeks flushed red in embarrassment at that. It was true though. Although in public, they behaved normally around each other, in private they were affectionate and close to each other. Just the other night, in fact, he stopped over and made love to her. In her physical body, she felt the pain of her first time, but it went away soon and was replaced by pure bliss.

“This is something about that night I don't want to concern Kurosaki-kun about.” Orihime focused on the topic at hand. “Regarding the aftermath of my body and powers.” For the past week, she had been unable to contact the Shun Shun Rikka. Her powers still worked, but they were only at a fraction of what they once were. No... there was an issue far more pressing: Her body felt weak. Her body and soul felt like they were breaking down slowly. She explained this to Urahara-san and he listened intently. “...Urahara-san?”

He finally spoke out, “You're here to ask for an explanation, but as your case is unique, I can only offer my best guess. Chances are that I'm right, but I could also be wrong as well.” She nodded, “To start with, the connection of two separate souls is a rare phenomenon. Only once before have I ever performed such a surgery. It was with strong reishi strings in order to bind a hollow's soul and prevent it from overtaking a young Quincy woman. I used a Shinigami trapped in a human gigai that was specially made for this as well.”

Inoue heard this story from Kurosaki-kun a few days ago. The Quincy woman was Masaki Kurosaki, and the Shinigami in the human gigai was Isshin Kurosaki. The hollow was the same one that Kurosaki-kun had inside him. Once it broke free, Kurosaki-san no longer needed to stay in the human gigai and regained his Shinigami powers as a result.

“I took every safety precaution in this surgery.” Urahara-san's words snapped the young woman out of her memories and back to the present. “Despite the reishi strings, they were both in physical bodies and it wasn't as strong as a connection as it could have been. It was only meant to seal the hollow. However, what you did was a magnitude higher than I ever would have done. You literally connected your soul chain to his body, an act I could not hope to replicate myself. There was no buffer between your souls in that connection. In terms of danger, there was a high chance that your soul could have been destroyed without any hope of reincarnation. You do understand that much, right?”

Inoue nodded. She knew from the discussion between the Shun Shun Rikka that night just how dangerous it was. Suicidal was the perfect word for it, in fact. “Kurosaki-san's reiatsu was far above yours. However, rather than damage your soul, it merged with it.” Urahara said softly. “You used Tensa Zangetsu's power in combat and accepted it as a part of yourself. All that happened that night should have been nearly impossible... but you stand before me, alive.”

“But not well.” Inoue added firmly. She knew her soul was in bad shape. It felt like it was constantly burning inside her body. “My soul itself is in bad shape. I can feel it breaking down.”

Urahara nodded and clutched his cane, “I suppose you want a way to fix this before you die then?” The beautiful maiden nodded and Urahara raised the cane and tapped her forehead with the end of it. “Alright.”

Orihime flew backwards out of her body; landing on her rear while she tried to get her senses back in order. She wasn't wearing her school uniform, but a white shihakusho identical to the one given to her by Tensa Zangetsu in Kurosaki-kun's inner world. “H-Huh?” She said absently as she felt around her chest: She had no soul chain. “What-” She gasped and jumped back in time to avoid a sword swing from the man in front of her. “U-Urahara-san, what are you doing?!”

“You wanted a solution, right? Putting the soul in danger is the best way to awaken its' latent potential. The same applied to Kurosaki-san in the Shattered Shaft.” He shifted his grip on the cane handle, “Awaken, Benihime.” The cane shifts into a sleek short sword that Orihime had seen once when Urahara and Yoruichi came to save her, Kurosaki-kun, Tatsuki, and Chad early in the battle against the Arrancar forces.

“Sing, Benihime!” He slashes the air and a blood-colored wave of reishi was launched straight at Orihime. She didn't even think about it; instantly raising Santen Kesshun to block the attack. The triangular shield now had a six-petaled hibiscus-shaped emblem on it. She remembered that she had that emblem on her shield when in Kurosaki-kun's inner world, but she thought it was because of using Tensa Zangetsu's power. “I see your powers have improved.” Urahara said lightly as the shield cracked and shattered after successfully blocking his first attack.

'Don't joke around!' Inoue mentally screamed. She had barely managed to block that attack! Her reiatsu dropped by half just using that shield! How the heck was she supposed to defend herself from him again?! She had to attack. “Koten Zanshun!” She called out the attack before it materialized; having changed into an arrowhead as it fired out at the former 12th Division captain. He raised his sword and a hexagon-shaped shield formed to block the attack. She knew he'd successfully block her if it hit the shield. Therefore...! “Santen Zanshun!” The attack split into three and deviated around the shield before circling around to hit the man. Her invention and solution to the weakness of Koten Zanshun. She used a lesser form of Soten Kisshun to alter Koten Zanshun with her 'Phenomenon Rejection' ability. When the enemy counterattacked or raised a barrier to block it, she'd split Koten Zanshun into multiple separate attacks as a counter. The attacks didn't contain even a fraction of the same cutting power, but the enemy wouldn't know that!

“Whoa!” Urahara hopped back from the point they would merge to hit him and watched them all merge back into Koten Zanshun. “Dangerous, dangerous~” He said happily before hopping to the side; her attack flying by the man before turning as it flew to pursue him. “I'm surprised you've improved your method of attack, Orihime-chan!” He called out as he ran from the attack; Koten Zanshun mercilessly pursuing the man. “I thought you were someone who hated hurting others!”

“That's true.” She said softly as she watched him run around pointlessly. “But I hate myself for being useless in a fight more.” The redhead knew that the man could easily find countless weaknesses to exploit. He wasn't taking this fight too seriously. Portable gigai or kido would be an effective counter. The instant her attack hit something, it was over. A wide spread kido would end it, and she knew fully well that he had that kind of kido available to him. Not only that, a precise kido that was faster than her reaction time could hit Koten Zanshun before it separated. Even failing all of that, he could just attack her directly!

Urahara made a sudden turn and ran straight at the redhead with one hand on the top of his hat to keep it from flying off while his other held his Zanpakuto. “Eh?!” Orihime noticed Koten Zanshun following him and panicked. “Are you nuts?!” He jumped onto the ground and Koten Zanshun flew at her; unable to turn away to avoid hitting her. Separation... wasn't working?! Her triangular shield appeared in time to block it; Koten Zanshun hitting the exact center of the shield.

“Aah, I'm saved.” Urahara said with a smile as he flipped back onto his feet as he watched her struggle against blocking her own attack. “Are you surprised, Orihime-chan?” He asked curiously, “I analyzed your attack and realized a few weaknesses. One was the reiatsu used to keep it airborne and on target, as well as the reiatsu required to separate it. In your condition, you don't have the reiatsu to use it continuously. The cost goes up the longer the attack flies around, right?”

“...” He wasn't incorrect. Normally Orihime didn't have an issue keeping it airborne and on target for long periods of time, but without the Shun Shun Rikka to support her, the cost was absurdly high. She wasted far more reiatsu than was necessary. In regards to her condition as well: He was also correct. Her reiatsu was almost depleted already. She had enough for one more attack...! “Shiten Koshun!” She snapped out; the shield reflecting Koten Zanshun back at Urahara-san.

He sidestepped the attack and it disappeared as she used up the rest of her reiatsu. “I must admit, you did better than I expected.” Urahara said lightly before slashing forward and unleashing Benihime's reiatsu at her. Inoue jumped to the side by reflex and only received a light cut on her left shin. “But you won't escape me.”

Orihime stumbled to her feet and bolted. He was serious! He was seriously after her! More slashes of red reiatsu flew at her and her black belt training kicked in; allowing her to dodge the fatal wounds she could have received from his attacks. “Koten Zanshun!” She cried out and her attack flew out behind her at the former Captain as she ran. Time. She needed time to gain some distance! She turned around to see if her attack did that much, at least, but her heart sank.

“Spurning, Benihime.” He drew a circle of red reiatsu and negated Koten Zanshun an instant before it hit him. “That attack won't work on me again. I've analyzed its' reiatsu so I merely need to negate it with the right timing and the same amount of reiatsu. Though I am slightly surprised that you recovered some reiatsu already.” He fired another wave of reiatsu at Orihime; the redhead raising a small shield to block it. The explosion from the clash cleared and she was gone. “It seems you move fast, as well.” He could easily track her down by reiatsu though. She was hiding behind one of the large rocks nearby. “I see you've realized how critical your situation is. You're quite clever. You've analyzed the reiatsu pattern of Shunpo over time and managed to duplicate it. No, you made your own version of it.”

Orihime's breathing was ragged as her back rested against the rock behind her. She didn't even know she could use that kind of move. Her body moved by reflex in that instant where she felt danger from his counterattack. She felt it deep in her: A well of reiatsu she had access to now. It slowly entered her body and restored her weakened self, as if it was a leaky faucet filling up an empty cup. She could still fight. No, she could still live. A 'fight' implied she had a chance of victory. She couldn't win against Urahara-san, but she could keep running.

“Razor, Benihime.” Orihime was prepared for that; jumping away from the rock. She expected the red wave of reiatsu to cut through the rock, and was anticipating it. She raised her shield to block it but she instead saw it fire off to the left of the rock. For an instant, she thought he missed, but then the red reiatsu redirected itself and targeted her! She moved her shield and blocked the attack on her left with it. “Binding, Benihime.” His voice spoke out from above her before a black and red net of reiatsu came down on her; pinning the redhead to the ground on her chest.

She gasped softly and struggled against the binding; despite the fact it was useless. “Fire-Playing, Benihime, Beaded Mesh.” He stabbed his sword into the net and the spheres connecting the net expanded in a steady pattern, as if there were going to-

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An explosion echoed throughout the basement; a pillar of fire roaring upwards as it seared and burned all those within it. Urahara jumped back before the detonation and landed a distance away from it. She wasn't dead. He knew that for a fact. The instant before it exploded he saw her body cloaked in golden reiatsu. The density of that reiatsu was beyond even her Santen Kesshun. He pushed her into a corner and forced her to awaken her powers at last. All the remained was to see her capabilities now.

A human who had Shinigami powers and even a fraction of hollow powers merged into her abilities. This result was an impossibility, but it was also something that happened before, with Kurosaki-san himself. 'Now all that is left is to see what she has become.'

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The field of hibiscus flowers around her was a soothing sight. She had seen this view numerous times after the incident a week ago. Whether in her dreams or during the day, the view was always accompanied by a searing heat throughout her body. Yet now the searing heat was replaced by a gentle warmth. The field seemed to stretch out for eternity, but at the same time it seemed to have a limit, almost as if the world itself was cut off at some point and faded into white. The sky above was light blue with the occasional puffy white cloud dotting it. The sun was not visible here.

The gentle chatter of voices echoed into her ears. She looked around in confusion before seeing six spheres of light flying around a figure in the distance. The reiatsu coming from the spheres was so familiar, yet different as well. Her bare feet stepped through the hibiscus field; the red flower petals flying into the air in the gentle wind.

The lights stopped flying around the figure and instead flew at the ginger-haired maiden. “Orihime-san!” She heard their voices and cried out happily. “Shun'o! Ayame! Lily! Baigon! Hinagiku! Tsubaki!” Five of the six lights flew around her in joy at being reunited after a mere few days.

The one that floated in the air a short distance away was Tsubaki, who had a satisfied expression on his face. “Took you long enough, Orihime.” In all honesty, that's the best Orihime ever expected from him in terms of happiness.

She smiled. “I missed you too, Tsubaki.” He snorted and looked towards the figure up ahead. Orihime stared at the figure in the distance before the Shun Shun Rikku, minus Tsubaki, urged her forward to approach the figure.

Her back was turned to the ginger-haired maiden, but she could tell from the size that it was a child with beautiful short red hair that reminded her of how she had her hair before becoming proud of it and letting it grow out. The white sleeveless dress on the barefooted child was modest and plain. “They're beautiful, aren't they?” Her voice was melodious. “The Shun Shun Rikka.”

“Who are you?” Orihime spoke out in a gentle voice before the girl turned around a showed a familiar heart-shaped face. Her eyes were a gentle brown color and reminded her of Kurosaki-kun's own eye color. In her hair was a golden hibiscus flower with the stem tucked behind her ear.

“I'll let you guess.” The girl said playfully. “You have three chances. I'll give you a hint after each wrong guess.”

“Um...” Orihime wasn't sure how the flow of this conversation got away from her so easily, but she decided to guess. “Can I ask questions for hints?” The young girl nodded with a smile. “Where are we?”

“We're in your mind. No, I should say your soul.” She said conversationally. “If I might borrow the words of the raccoon eyed guy out there, I'd call this your 'inner world.'”

“...Are you me?”

“Nope! Good guess though!” The girl said cheerfully. “It's pretty close to the truth. I am a part of you.”

Orihime racked her brains. She remembered that night she was with Ichigo in his inner world. Who was in there? Zangetsu, the hollow, Orihime, Kurosaki-kun... “Are you... the Shun Shun Rikka themselves?”

The girl stared at Orihime in amazement before grinning, “Very good! I didn't think you'd guess so close to the truth a second time! Here's the second hint: Look at me and sense my reiatsu.”

Orihime didn't need to do that. She knew exactly what the girl in front of her was now. “The manifestation of Kurosaki-kun's power.”

“Ding! Ding! We have a winner!” Confetti fell from the sky in the form of countless golden hibiscus flower petals. “That's right, Orihime-san! I am the manifestation of Ichigo-san's powers. But I am, also, in a way the child born from the two of you.”

“Wh-” Orihime's cheeks turned rose red. “C-C-Child?! I'm pregnant?!” She immediately began to panic at that prospect. Was she not safe last night?! Wait, when did this happen?! She was still in high school! She couldn't just-

“Calm down, Orihime-san. You're not pregnant.” The child assured the ginger-haired maiden. “Geez, stop overreacting. I said I was 'born' from the two of you. Even if you were pregnant, that child would not be born yet.” She noticed Orihime calm down slightly so she continued. “I was born, or rather created, from the union of your reiatsu. I don't think I need to explain what event caused it a week ago after you defeated the Hollow, right?” She said pointedly; causing Orihime's blush to return in full force.

“Y-You're just a child! Don't say such things!” Orihime shouted at the young girl in front of her.

“I might look like a child, but I'm not as innocent as I look.” She told her with a faint smile. “You should think of me as the same age as you.” The girl walked over to Orihime before two hibiscus flowers grew up tall and big; acting as stools. The redhead sat in one. “Take a seat. We have a lot to talk about.”

Orihime was having trouble keeping up with everything and mutely sat down in the chair. “I don't understand any of this. First Urahara fights me so seriously and then I'm thrown in here with all this information jammed into my head.” Her eyes widened, “Wait, that's right! He was trying to kill me out there! I have to return-”

“There's no rush.” The child said sweetly. “He wasn't trying to kill you. He was forcing your soul to wake my reiatsu inside of you up. The reason your soul burned wasn't because it was breaking down, but because I kept trying to break the seal on my reiatsu that was inside you. Your body and soul saw me as a foreign entity and sealed me. It was a bit irritating, to be honest.” She sighed, “Anyways, back to the raccoon eyed idiot. Even if he was after you seriously, while you're in here, we have the time to talk. Your mind and soul can think faster than the body, so you'll be safe for a few more minutes. Do you have any questions?”

“Are you a Zanpakuto?” Orihime threw out the first possible idea in her mind. Hachi, when he repaired her Shun Shun Rikka and restored Tsubaki, told her that her hairpins were like the Zanpakuto that Shinigami used.

“Yes and no. Unlike the Shinigami Zanpakuto, I'm not made with an Asauchi. I was born as a manifestation of your powers. The hairpins themselves can act as a medium, but they aren't needed for my abilities.”

“What is your name?”

“Hanahime.” The girl replied sweetly. “You can hear it clearly too. That's good. My name just needs to be known by you. It's not necessary to call it out to use my strength. I'll help you fight and win your battles too.” She looked up at the sky, “Speaking of which, I think we should kick that jerk's ass for nearly killing you a few times already.” Orihime felt her vision going white.

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The dust cleared and Orihime's outfit was vastly different. Her white shihakusho was discarded; blown away in the pure surge of reiatsu that erupted from Inoue's body. She had a golden hibiscus flower tucked behind her ear and her eyes were a gentle silver color. Her clothing now consisted of a tight fitting white tanktop and shorts that clung to her curvy figure. The emblem of the hibiscus flower was on her chest. She had white cloth bracers on her wrists and fingerless gloves on. She also had matching stocking that ran up to above her knees. Golden patterns were on her bracers and regulated the amount of reiatsu that came out from her body. After the initial surge, the bracers suppressed it and brought her reiatsu down to a more reasonable level.

Urahara just stared at the ginger-haired maiden with serious eyes. Unwavering and confident. “Well, it looks like my gambit worked.” Urahara said airily but the pressure he felt from Orihime was something unexpected: Fighting spirit. She wanted to kick his ass. “So aggressive too.”

“Tsubaki.” Orihime whispered before holding her right hand out. “Cut him down.” A large hibiscus-shaped flower blossom with six petals on it formed in front of her before numerous Koten Zanshuns fired out at the former captain. He didn't attempt to block the attack; evading it with narrowed eyes. The attacks fired didn't pursue him. They fired straight ahead. “You dodged.” Orihime said calmly, “That was likely a smart idea. They would have pierced through your Blood Mist Shield.”

“I see, you're rather hostile towards me.” Urahara noted. “Not surprising, but you do know that I did that in order to awaken your powers, right?”

“I know that.” Orihime said sweetly. “I just felt that 'punishing' you a bit for not asking if it was alright was in order.” She dismissed the flower blossom in front of her. “But I wouldn't want to explain to Kurosaki-kun why I was attacking you.” Her clothes changed back to a shihakusho before she walked over to her body. The beautiful young woman created a golden chain that connected her to her body before she re-entered it.

She took a deep breath and opened her gentle gray eyes before standing up; brushing herself off. “There.” Inoue looked up, “I made it in time.”

“Inoue!” Ichigo shouted as he jumped down from the shop above in his Shinigami form. “Are you alright?!”

“I'm fine! I was just training in secret is all!” She lied smoothly. The ginger-haired woman noticed Urahara had already returned his sword back into its' cane form. “I knew that I'd worry you if I asked to spar, and you'd hold back against me.” Kurosaki stared at her suspiciously. “Wouldn't you?”

“I probably would.” He admitted with a sigh, “But that doesn't mean that I can't watch you train, right? I was worried about you when I felt your reiatsu spike like that.”

Orihime walked over to Ichigo and hugged him gently. “Kurosaki-kun, I'm fine now. Better than fine, actually. I'll talk about it later though.” She smiled sweetly at him with doe eyes.

He finally gave up, “Alright. If you're done training, did you want to walk home with me?” Despite not pressing the issue, he probably planned to ask her in private.

“Sure! Could you meet me outside? I think I dropped my hairpins earlier and I don't want to lose them.” The Shinigami nodded and left.

“I'm shocked you lied to him.” Urahara commented as he fanned himself.

“Every relationship has to have a few secrets. There was no harm done.” Orihime replied before holding her hand out and the hairpins rematerialized.

“And?” Urahara stared at her intently.

“Well, your theory was right about the change in my reiatsu and the nature of the powers.” The human replied as she clipped the hairpins into her blouse. “I'll tell Kurosaki-kun the truth later. He's still rather protective of me, after all.” She curtsied to Urahara. “Thank you, Urahara-san.” She left the underground training hall.

“...No, Orihime-chan.” Urahara whispered in a serious voice after she left the room. “I didn't guess it right in the end. You'll realize the truth one day: The nature of the Shun Shun Rikka is something I couldn't have predicted after all.” Phenomenon Rejection wasn't the right term after all. Neither him or Aizen guessed it right. The only limits she had was the limits she set on herself and the amount of reiatsu she possessed. In that regard, she was just like...

“The Hougyoku.” He closed his eyes. 'It acts as a guide for the user of it. It grants their wishes, so long as they have that potential. For me, it was the Visored. For Aizen, it was to transcend Hollow and Shinigami. For Orihime... it is the sincere wish to protect the people she loves, no matter the cost.' He opened his eyes, 'Perhaps she is the one who truly deserves the Hougyoku.'

From here on out her power would grow and develop further and further. She had no limits, but she didn't seek power like most people would in a situation where anything was possible for them. She'd limit herself at what she was at now, unless the need for more power arose. She was selfless in that regard, but Urahara was concerned about two parts. One was what would happen if Orihime herself changed in personality. He remembered her fighting spirit earlier and how happy she looked as she fought him, however briefly. The lust for battle and power go hand in hand. In time, it could consume her.

The second and most pressing concern for Urahara was the Central 46. If they ever realized how dangerous Orihime could become, they'd order for her sealing or execution. That order would divide Soul Society in half: Those who reluctantly follow the orders and those who refused out of their sense of justice. Many in Soul Society knew about Orihime's character and felt she'd never betray them, but the 'perfect' law system of Soul Society had almost never been questioned in its' countless years of service, even after the creation of the Gotei 13.

“We can only wait and see.” Urahara muttered. He decided in that instant. He would not support the Central 46 if it ordered Orihime's death. A law system that has forgotten human emotions had no right to judge Orihime, so he would fight against it with her if necessary. It was the least he owed her for everything, and owed Ichigo.

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	3. Stairway to Heaven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Orihime grows stronger, Urahara gives the recommendation for her to train with the others at the Soul King's Palace until the next Quincy attack begins, but is she prepared for what will be required of her to reach her limits?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally received a burst of inspiration after so long, likely due to the decline in quality in Bleach chapters. I'm pretty rusty after so long so forgive typos and such. This is obviously an AU that changes when the Quincy start their second attack on Seireitei until later, so stick with it. Keeping up with the Manga from here on out would be a good idea too, because there WILL be spoilers. I also don't intend to type out every scene in detail. I'm brushing over the main differences and focusing on Orihime for this, and a bit with Ichigo.

The ginger-haired maiden soaked in the hot white waters of the hot spring with a white towel wrapped around her busty figure; barely concealing her breasts and upper thighs. Her hair was held up out of the water by a hairclip with a small hand towel on top of it. Normally soaking in a hot spring like this was be fantastic, but it was awkward because she wasn't alone. The love of her life, Kurosaki Ichigo, was next to her with only a towel around his waist and soaking in the waters as well. There was a second man, too, but he had a black pompadour hairstyle and a small stick in his mouth. His name was Tenjiro Kirinji, the Hot Springs Demon and member of the Royal Division.

“Why the hell are we soaking in this damn hot spring still?!” Ichigo finally shouted out after half an hour; standing up in the hot spring. “Neither of us are even injured!”

“Shut it. This isn't just for injuries, you pussy.” Tenjiro spoke out with a grumble. “If this was just for injuries, it'd make a lousy hot spring. You, redhead, explain it to your idiot boyfriend.”

Orihime's cheeks darkened. “W-Well, Kurosaki-kun. Hot water is good for relaxing the body and the mind. Am I right?” She glanced at the member of Zero Squad.

“Yup. That's right. That's why you should shut up and relax in the water, carrot top.” Tenjiro told Ichigo bluntly before Ichigo glared at him and sunk back into the waters with annoyance. “Ah, well, you lot have relaxed enough anyways. Get out.”

“What the hell?!” Ichigo shouted as he stood right back up. “I complain and get shot down, and one second later you're kicking us out-” That earned him a punch in the gut that sent him flying out of the hot spring and into the wall. “Asshole...!” It didn't injured him at all; having instinctively expected the attack coming like it did the first time he came here.

“Tch, looks like your reaction time got better since last time.” Tenjiro scowled. “Out, redhead. You're off to Gatonden next. You'd better get dressed before you get sent flying over there.”

“R-Right...”

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“Santen Kesshun!” Orihime called out before their crash landing to cushion the impact for her and Ichigo. She was dressed in a white shihakusho that went halfway down her thighs and her hairpins were in her hair once again. “That was a bit scary.” She laughed a bit nervously.

“Everyone here is over the top. I should have warned you about that before we came here.” Ichigo smiled at her with a hint of apology in his voice.

“It's okay.” She smiled before seeing smoke coming out of one of the windows and the scent of food reached her nose. She let out a low groan of delight. “It smells amazing.” Orihime immediately ran into the palace with Ichigo following after her; knowing the feast that would soon be at their fingertips.

As they entered the room, Orihime's lips let out an almost sensual groan of delight at the amount of food on the table. Considering her unique tastes in food, it was no surprise that she fell in love with the rather unusual looking feast immediately. Ichigo couldn't help but smile at her reaction to the food before they were seated.

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“You know, I think I'm used to the flying. Maybe I should find a way to use the Shun Shun Rikka to fly.” She spoke to Ichigo as they were soaring through the air after being sent off to the next palace. “It might be fun.”

“You could try to stand on air like other Shinigami do.” Ichigo suggested; both amused and grateful she had stopped discussing the food they ate at the previous palace. Orihime seemed to get along with Hikifune from the instant they met and even compared the kinds of foods they ate. Her reply to his question snapped him out of his thoughts.

“Maybe, but I want to come up with my own way to do it. Maybe with wings on my back.” She speculated with a smile while Ichigo stared at her with a hint of amusement. “I could be like an angel; flying everywhere and- Kurosaki-kun, why are you grinning?” She pouted slightly.

“Nothing. It's just, well, you don't need wings to look like an angel.” Ichigo wasn't sure what the hell he was thinking when he said that, but Orihime's face burned bright red from those words.

“W-W-What?! I mean, I'm really flattered and, um-” She began to stutter nervously as the ground of the next palace approached. That provided a way out of this conversation immediately. “Oh! Santen Kesshun!” She quickly activated her shield to cushion the impact that would have happened as they landed. It was empty, as Ichigo expected, until the spotlights blared on, causing Inoue to gasp and squint her eyes in the bright light. “Huh?!”

“We have two guests! Our home is your home!” The gaudy, loud voice rang out; causing Orihime to cover her ears with confusion while Ichigo just covered his ears with annoyance. “Your heads are held high, your heads are held high! In other words, your heads are so hi- OW!” The man who was doing his best to scream his lungs out with the microphone was kicked off the platform he stood by what appeared to be a young woman. “Mera-chan, don't ruin the vibe I've got going!”

“Idiot, you think we have the time to indulge your gaudiness?” She spoke out bluntly. “Okay, you two. Let's go get this over with.” She jumped down and gestured them over.

“Noooo! At least allow me to show off my Galaxy Phoenix Palace and all the hot women again!” The man on the ground complained.

“Hot women?” Orihime glanced at Ichigo with a slight pout.

“They were Zanpakuto.” Ichigo knew that look all too well now. “I wasn't too impressed, but Kon was overjoyed and wanted to stay forever.” That comment caused Orihime to giggle; relaxing the tension almost immediately.

“Alright, cut out the lovey dovey crap. Get in the shack over there, princess.” The woman told Orihime bluntly. “Kurosaki, you don't need to go inside. Meditate or whatever you want to do out here. Don't interfere, even if your girl here is getting her ass kicked around.”

“It's okay Kurosaki-kun.” Orihime smiled fondly at Ichigo, despite the concern on his face. “I expected to have to fight hard for this. I won't run away or- Eh?!” She was kicked into the open shack by Mera and she fell down into the darkness.

“Geez, Mera-chan is moving things right along.” The Blade God, Nimaiya Ouetsu, walked over to the entrance that Orihime was kicked into. “Hey there, your name is Inoue Orihime, right? Well Hime-chan, I'll go over what you're supposed to do down there, since you're a human.” He crouched down at the edge and stared down at her. “Only Shinigami get my Asauchi, you dig? You're just a human soul with a bit of Shinigami in you thanks to Chan-Ichi.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder at Ichigo. “You have a smidge of Hollow in you too, but I don't care 'bout that bit. Your 'guest' in your head is your powers, and you have a 'Zanpakuto' in the form of those cute little hairpins, so why do you want one of my Asauchi? Cause you can't draw out your full powers. You're a weak human girl who can't do anything with a body like that.” He smiled as he felt fighting spirit and anger that was being suppressed from the redhead below. “So your task is simple: Fight and survive.” Countless eyes in the dark lit up. Humanoid figures that were smooth and flawless; like blank sheets of paper. “You have three days.”

The figures rushed at Orihime; leaving her no time to even ask what she was supposed to do. “Tsubaki-” Her hand went to her hairpins but they were gone.

“No, no, no. These cute little guys right here aren't going to help you.” Nimaiya held the hairpins between his index finger and thumb; causing Orihime's eyes to widen in shock. “In fact, since you want a new Zanpakuto, you don't need em.” He flips them up and crushes them in his hand.

“You bastard...!” Orihime spoke with fury in her voice before kicking one of the Asauchi in the face; sending it flying. “Those were...!” Her brother's gift to her.

“Ooh, quite a bit of pent up frustration in you, huh? You should focus on your task rather than me, you dig?”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Orihime rarely felt rage or anger. She always suppressed those feelings deep in her heart; feeling ashamed of those emotions. However, she still felt them, no matter how much she bottled them up. For the first time in her life, she let them loose without restraint. The skills she was trained in by Tatsuki shone brightly as she fought the Asauchi. Her skills at the level of a black belt and her reiatsu acting as her 'armor' to shield her from harm.

'I can't break them.' No matter how she attacked the Asauchi, she could only repel them. She could never inflict wounds or damage to their bodies. She didn't expect that she'd be capable of cutting them down, but to be unable to even damage their exterior was surprising. However, these topics weren't the first thing on her mind. The first thing on her mind was reaching Nimaiya and beating him up until he cried...! Her reiatsu surged at those thoughts and she blasted five Asauchi in front of her away with the force of a truck; using just her fist to do it.

That was another things that she didn't think about, really. The more her emotions ran away with her, the more damage she did to her surroundings. Had she been thinking rationally, such overabundance of power would likely scare her. She chained up her instincts in her heart that sought to lash out and, as a result, she didn't want to hurt others and her power for attack was held back. Right now, she wanted to tear everything around her apart.

She had lost track of time. How long had she been fighting? Was it minutes, hours, or even days at this point? Her exhaustion had beset her in the first hour of prolonged battle but she rejected the exhaustion and kept going. The golden yellow aura flowing around her body shone brightly with each attack as her emotions were set loose. Her hair flew out behind her as she ducked down under a kick and charged forward to tackle another Asauchi. She grabbed its' shoulders and flipped over it before kicking back into its' head and landing on the ground. Three attacks hit her; her stomach, left side and right shoulder. “Tch!”

Her aura around her body was sturdy but it couldn't block the full force of the attacks. Her clothing was torn all over from the fighting but the aura acted to numb the pain of her wounds. She kept moving; her aura erupting around her before she roughly swung both arms to the sides; blasting the Asauchi near her away before charging once again. She didn't know what she was supposed to do in the end, but she just kept moving forward. Sweat covered her body from the battling she had done thus far but her strength didn't seem to be waning in the slightest. “Haaa!” She let out a battle cry full of everything she had and the Asauchi flinched.

Her eyes, normally gentle, were firm with resolve and a will to fight. There was not a shred of hesitation in them anymore. She took a step forward and the Asauchi in front of her knelt down. She reached out and patted it on the head before it broke apart to form the young girl with red hair from her 'inner world.' “Excellent job, Orihime.” Hanahime whispered before standing up and looking up at Nimaiya. “Ready to get forging, Zanpakuto maker?” She asked bluntly.

“Of course I'm ready to get forging, little Asauchi-” He was cut off as the girl appeared in front of him and kicked him firmly in the chest; sending him flying back a few meters. “Oh my, such a fiery girl.” He spoke pleasantly while Orihime jumped out of the pit she had been put in with ease now; her eyes calm and filled with unshakable resolve.

“I'm Hanahime, bitch. Get used to it, ya dig.” She taunted Nimaiya with her hands on her hips. “And that kick was for making Orihime cry. So? Let's get forging.” She saw Ichigo staring at her and Orihime with amazement. He obviously didn't expect the brashness and willful nature the Zanpakuto showed, especially considering Orihime's usual personality. “Hey there, Ichigo. Take care of my Master, got it? Or I'll kick your ass.” She winked before glowing and shrinking into a pair of hairpins that flew into Nimaiya's outstretched hand.

“Time to get to work then!”

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Orihime and Ichigo were flown to the next palace; soaring through the skies. Ichigo was marveled at the change Orihime went through from Nimaiya's test. After the initial aggressive and resolved stance she gave off, she returned to her sweet and gentle self. However, she also seemed a bit playful in her actions now. She laughed and smiled with no hesitation to show her emotions; as if a large burden had been lifted from her body and mind.

Her Zanpakuto was sheathed at her waist. The weapon's hilt was a crystal clear light blue that matched the hairpins she now had tied to the pummel of the sword. It's guard resembled the six petals of her hairpins and the sheath was the same crystal clear light blue color. The blade itself was white in color, like a normal katana. The weapon seemed delicate like glass at first glance but it also showed no flaws and no deceptions. That's the kind of feeling Ichigo received as he stared at the weapon.

“Um, Kurosaki-kun...” Orihime seemed a tad flustered at how intently he stared at her. “I'm really happy you're staring at me, but we should wait until later before you think about that kind of thing.”

“Huh? No, I was just staring at your Zanpakuto.” Ichigo replied honestly; confused at the pout that formed on Inoue's lips. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing.” Inoue also had the occasional childish pout from some of the things that Ichigo said or did. “Time to land, Hanahime.” Her Zanpakuto was different from most. Its' sealed state was still her hairpins, while her 'Shikai' was the katana sheathed at her waist. She drew her sword with her right hand while her left hand's index and middle fingertips glowed as she traced a triangle in front of her. A barrier the same shape as she traced formed on the ground at their landing site and negated the impact completely. In fact, it acted like a trampoline of sorts which Orihime used to flip forward and land while Ichigo, not expecting it, ended up landing on his face. “Are you okay, Kurosaki-kun?”

“Yeah. Warn me when you decide to do that again.” He grumbled before taking Inoue's outstretched hand and noticing a clear sky blue bracelet on it with the symbol of the Shun Shun Rikka attached to it. “Inoue, what is that?”

“Oh? This is part of my Shikai. I've got one on both wrists. Hanahime says it's to help regulate my reiatsu.” She smiled at him.

“Hanahime is your Zanpakuto, right?” Ichigo spoke out, deciding to ask a few details. A Zanpakuto reflects the heart of the user, in a way. “Isn't she a bit...”

“Offensive? Rude?” A small voice piped out impishly at Orihime's side; the young girl with red hair and the one piece white dress materialized and offered suggestions. “You can be honest. I won't be offended.” She teased.

“Aggressive.” Ichigo decided to go with the less damning word he could think of.

“Sounds like a certain other Zanpakuto spirit, huh?” Hanahime remarked blandly; pointing to the sword sheathed on Ichigo's back. “The King or the Horse, right?” She teased him playfully before noticing his stare. “Don't give me that look. It's simple instincts, right?” She vanished.

He wasn't sure how to respond to that and decided to move on. “Inoue, the next member of Zero Squad, Senjumaru, will be in charge of getting you dressed in proper clothes for battle. You might have to endure a bit, though, so bear through it, okay?”

Orihime wasn't sure what he meant at first until they arrived in the palace and she stood before Senjumaru Shutara. “Strip. All of it. I need your measurements.” It was a frank order for Orihime to hear and her cheeks reddened as she remembered Ichigo came into the room with her.

“I'll wait outside.” Ichigo left the room with a hint of embarrassment on his cheeks. After he left, Orihime reluctantly slid her torn and battered shihakusho off; along with the sash. She took her Zanpakuto and the bracelets on her wrists and rest them on the ground. She noticed Senjumaru's stare and finally removed her undergarments.

Orihime's body was lush and inviting to any male's eyes. Her breasts were full and plump; sagging a bit from the weight in them. She shyly hid her perky nipples from Senjumaru's sight with her left arm; pushing against her bust. Her waist was slim and her hips widened out; finishing her hourglass figure. Her womanhood was shaven without a bit of hair while her legs were smooth and long. “Um... can you not stare too much?”

“Don't be so flustered.” Senjumaru snorted. “I see you keep your body in good shape. Martial arts, and an odd diet.” Orihime's eyes widened. “I can understand that much just by looking at your figure.” She walked over to the ginger-haired maiden and numerous arm appendages came out from behind her with numerous tape measures. “Don't move.” Senjumaru gave crisps orders for Orihime to use certain stances with her body and took measurements of them. After about fifteen minutes, Senjumaru nodded. “Good enough. I'll get started.”

“Hey, lady, mind if I give some input?” Hanahime materialized next to Orihime's body in her usual white dress. “After all, in terms of style, I'm-”

“No. Go back to your sword, Zanpakuto. This is my jurisdiction.” Senjumaru shot Hanahime down; causing her eye to twitch.

“Yeah, no.” Hanahime began to talk again; keeping her temper under control. “I understand it's your jurisdiction and everything, but all I planned to input is the designs and colors-”

“I said no. I already have the perfect outfit in mind. You may judge it after it is done.” Senjumaru's numerous hands immediately went to work; ignoring the fuming Zanpakuto spirit.

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The doors opened an hour after Ichigo left the room and he turned his head to face them before freezing at the sight of his beloved. She wore a normal black shihakusho like most Shinigami with a white sash at her waist and her katana sheathed with the sash holding it up. The shihakusho was open in the front slightly near the top to flirt a bit of Orihime's cleavage, but otherwise the outfit she wore was normal in design. The shihakusho went down to just above her ankles to show she wore normal sandals with white stockings on underneath the shihakusho that went up to her knees.

What was odd was the white haori she wore over the shihakusho that seemed like a Captain's Haori, although there were key differences. Instead of the Squad Captain insignia, it had the light blue pattern of the Shun Shun Rikka on it. The normal black diamonds on the bottom of the cloak were replaced by light blue hibiscus flower buds with six petals on them; all connected together by vines.

Her silver eyes went to Ichigo and her lips formed a serene smile. “I'm back. Sorry you had to wait so long, Kurosaki-kun.”

“I'm not... stupid lady wouldn't even use one suggestion I had!” Hanahime grumbled and complained as she walked at Orihime's side with a new pink dress that had cute white hibiscus flowers all over it. “This makes me look like a child.”

“'But you are a child.'” Orihime and Ichigo spoke out in unison before blinking and staring at each other in amazement.

“That was weird.” Orihime giggled before twirling in front of Ichigo with a smile on her lips. “So, how do I look?”

“You look great.” A pout formed on Orihime's lips. “I'm not used to giving compliments, Inoue.” He took a deep breath. “You're gorgeous.”

Orihime's cheeks turned a bit red from that and she laughed before hugging Ichigo tightly; her full breasts pressed against his chest and her lips touching his in a sweet kiss. “I love you, Kurosaki-kun.” She whispered softly.

“I love you too, Inoue.” He whispered back before kissing her once again. His hands slid around her waist and he had begun to deepen the kiss when both of them heard Hanahime clear her throat.

The child looked amused. “Now, I don't think this is the time, you two.” She pointed out blandly. “We have one palace left to go to, so save it until after we're done.”

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hahaha, welcome to the last palace, Kurosaki Ichigo. Inoue Orihime!” The boisterous man spoke out with a grin. “Ichigo, you know the drill so you can get started with training inside. Refine your power until Orihime is ready to join you.” After Ichigo left, he began to speak out to Orihime in a more calm voice. “Urahara sent up the Tenshintai for your training to reach Bankai, but I doubt you'll need it.”

“True. Although I'm a Zanpakuto, I'm also not a Zanpakuto.” Hanahime materialized next to Orihime; catching Hyousubi Ichibei's eye instantly. “You know who and what I am just by seeing me, right?”

“Of course. My, my, such an interesting coincidence to see you in that form.” He smiled slightly. “Well then, Inoue Orihime, are you prepared for your training?”

“Yes!” Orihime shouted with eyes filled with resolve.

“Then get yourself in a meditative pose and put your sword over your lap.” Orihime willingly sits down and places her Zanpakuto over her lap; closing her eyes. “Now clear your mind.” He took out his large paintbrush and began to draw on the ground around her until she was in a circle. He drew a second, larger circle around the first one and then wrote a number of words between the two circles. “Well, let's see how well you do, hm?” Orihime made no motion that she heard him and a cut was made on her side. “You're in then. Your friend in there isn't going to show mercy to you, so be prepared.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Her Inner World had changed. The sky was covered by dark clouds that threatened to rain down and the flowery field was filled with wilting flowers that sought the Sun and Rain more than anything. In the center of the field was a young woman with her bright red hair tied into a ponytail that went down her back; strands of golden yellow hair mixed in. Her outfit was a beautiful pink hooded cloak covered in white, orange and red petals. The woman turned to face Orihime and her brown eyes regarded the ginger-haired maiden before she smiled slightly. “Hey, princess.” A gust of wind blew up the petals of the wilting flowers away.

“Hanahime...?” Orihime was shocked at the state of her inner world. It shouldn't be like this, should it? Her heart was calm, right?

“Draw your sword, Orihime. Or you'll die.” Hanahime spoke with a hint of detachment as she raised her hand to the sky and six spheres of light fell down around her in a semi circular pattern before the light faded to revealed six humanoid figures that were too familiar to Orihime that she'd never mistake them. The Shun Shun Rikka, but human sized! “Tsubaki, cut loose.”

“Heh, gladly!” Tsubaki's wings flared up on his back before flying right at Orihime. The fairy materialized a black sword similar in design to Orihime's Zanpakuto and slashed at her as she drew her own Zanpakuto in defense. “Too soft.” The top half of Orihime's sword was cut clean off and a gash was torn in her side; drawing blood. “Grow a backbone, damnit!” Tsubaki spun around and kicked Orihime firmly in the side that blood was drawn from; causing the human to cough up blood as she was sent flying.

“Why... Why are you fighting me...?!” Orihime managed to gasp out before a fist swung out and forced her to block an attack made from her right. Baigon's fist impacted against her broken sword blade and blasted her back a few feet. “What is going on?!” She screamed out.

Shun'no spoke out. “Orihime, why did you choose this road?” His gentle, smiling face had a hint of sadness in it. “Why choose a Zanpakuto over us?”

“What do you mean?” Orihime gasped out as she caught her breath.

“To create a Zanpakuto like this would manifest us as 'her' over there.” Shun'no looked at Hanahime. “She would be your powers from now on, and we would disappear to become part of her instead of separate spirits.”

“What...?” Orihime's eyes widened in shock. “But that's...”

“You changed, girl.” Tsubaki spoke out bluntly. “You chose power over us. You chose to sacrifice anything and everything you had to back then in Kurosaki's mind. Why hesitate now?” He pointed his sword at her. “Your job is to defeat us.”

“It's as they say, Orihime.” Hanahime spoke out. “Move forward. The only way you will gain more power is to overcome your limits. So come, Inoue Orihime, and let's see if you can live through the coming battles.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see, rust is everywhere in this chapter. I was tempted not to post it but it seemed like a waste to not show people if they were interested. Remember to give me your input, everyone!

**Author's Note:**

> Like I said, the ending part seems less detailed because, honestly, I'm tired. I might fix it later, or I might not. Just as I might or might not make a sequel involving Hollow Ichigo in the fun. I'll wait for your input~
> 
> Oh, and look up hibiscus on wikipedia and you'll find out why I made Tensa Zangetsu's blade red. Sure, I could have made Orihime's hair red but that didn't appeal to me.
> 
> And let me know if there were any typos I missed!


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